


Mermaid

by Poetinprogress1234



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Legacies, posie - Freeform, theoriginals, thevampirediaries, tvd
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-11-04
Packaged: 2020-05-16 06:59:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 40,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19312999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poetinprogress1234/pseuds/Poetinprogress1234
Summary: If there's one thing Josie knows she's good at it's swimming. It's slightly annoying that Penelope Park just happens to be a little better.orPenelope and Josie are on rivaling swim teams, but they unknowingly share a special bond.





	1. Chapter 1: The Legend

**Author's Note:**

  * For [FenneVerrecas on Wattpad :)](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=FenneVerrecas+on+Wattpad+%3A%29).



> Just a little (A LOT) of backstory. Feel free to skip this, but some of the OCs and "easter eggs" might be confusing if you do 
> 
> *Andrea "Andie" Benett - The daughter of Bonnie and Enzo from TVD. In this story, Enzo still dies and Bonnie is a single mom. She's a year younger than Hope.  
> *Ember "Emmy" Salvatore - The daughter of stephen, cousin to Mia Salvatore. Stephen and Caroline never had a thing, and Elena ended up choosing Damon. He married a new woman named Laina, Ember's mother.  
> *Hannah Mikaelson- The daughter of Hayley and Elijah. She is several years younger than the other girls. Hope is fiercely protective of her. The girls stay with the Saltzman family while her mother travels for work (Yes, Klaus is still ded)  
> *Jenna Gilbert- Daughter of Jeremy, Elena's younger brother. He went off to college, met a girl, and she got pregnant. Jeremy isn't sure if she's his biologically, but he treats her like she's his own anyway.  
> *Katalina "Kat" Petrova-Pierce- The daughter of Katherine, brought into the world by magic, after Katherine made a deal with a witch, who spelled her with a child. Everyone is convinced that she's the only person Katherine's every truly loved.  
> *Lilith Parker- Daughter of Kai Parker. Kai kept Lilith a secret from his family, and she was only discovered after he was sent to the prison world. She stays with her mother, and tends to distance herself from the people that her father caused so much pain to so long ago. Still, Alaric and Caroline always look out for the girl.  
> *Mia Salvatore- Daughter of Elena and Damon. Elena and Damon never married, but they are still together. They have three children, Mia being the eldest. She's close to her cousins, Ember and Jenna.  
> *Sadie Mikaelson- Daughter of Freya and Keelin by adoption. A very shy and quiet girl, Sadie joins the swim team to be closer to Hope, though she's not the best at the sport.  
> *Paisley Park- Penelope's older sister. She's a swimmer for Stanford. Penelope doesn't like to talk about her very much, and they have a strained relationship.

Josie propelled herself through the water, gliding effortlessly from one side of the pool to the other. Her lungs burn, begging her to come up and take a breath, but there's no stopping Josie now. She feels weightless, surrounded by the clear blue of the chlorinated water. She passes Lizzie, feeling the drag of the water that her sister's body is creating. She stretched out her hand, turning in the water to bounce off the edge of the pool. She pops up to the surface for a split second, takes a breath, then pushes forward to finish what she had started.  
To Josie, there was no feeling better than being in the pool. She had loved swimming for as long as she could remember- her mother often joked that it was because she had had a water birth with Josie and her twin sister, Lizzie. She had been competing since she was in preschool, her sister following her into lessons a year later. While it had taken Lizzie some time to combat her fear of the deep end of the pool, Josie had braved it headfirst. While Lizzie had refused to jump off the diving board when they were eleven years old, Josie had leaped off with an impressive form. Swimming was one of the very few things that Josie was better than her sister in, and it was something she never had to prove to anyone that she was "good enough" at. Josie was used to letting her sister be better at pretty much everything- Lizzie had the best grades, the best grade point average, and even the best attendance. Swim competitions, however, that was Josie's time to shine.  
As she popped up out of the water, she heard the eruption of cheers from her teammates. Her best friend, Hope, handed her a towel after she heaved herself out of the water, a knowing smile on her face. "Damn, Saltzman, you beat your best time by seven seconds", she exclaimed, causing Josie to grin proudly. She had been putting a lot of effort into reducing her time, and it was beginning to pay off. Each time she shaved down a few seconds from her time, it made the endless hours of practice seem worth it. "I hope you have some energy like that next week.", Hope reminded her, causing Josie to groan. It wasn't as if she could forget that the welcome meet was in just a few short days, but she was trying her hardest to. The welcome meet was the first meet of the swim season, and it was time to show the other teams what exactly the Salvatore school was made of. Especially her long time rival, Penelope Park.  
Bellmont Academy, a school located on the north end of mystic falls, was and always had been their biggest competition. They had yet to beat the elusive team, even individually. While Josie could take on most of the Bellmont girls without breaking a sweat, even she was no match against their captain, Penelope. The raven-haired swimmer was someone that no other girl wanted to be up against. It was always guaranteed that Penelope would come out victorious, leaving her opponent weeping in the sidelines. It was no wonder why Penelope was such a powerhouse; She was the daughter of swimming legends. Both her mother and father had been Olympic gold medalists, and her sister Paisley had gone on to Standford after high school, earning a full paid athletic scholarship. Everyone, even Penelope's teammates, were jealous of the snarky youngest Park legend. This naturally led to the circulation of plenty of outlandish rumors about her.  
"I heard Penelope eats nothing but crackers and water", Mia Salvatore whispered, wringing out her wet hair. "That's how she has, like, zero percent body fat." "Well, I heard that she laces her coffee with steroids.", Katalina Pierce chimed in. "I believe it. There's no way in hell she got those muscles naturally." Josie rolled her eyes, snapping to catch the girls' attention. The two of them looked up, embarrassed to have been caught red-handed. "If you have the energy to gossip, you have the energy to swim extra laps. If you keep focusing on some petty drama you're going to cost us the meet." The two girls groaned, trying to negotiate with their captain; Josie, however, was not in the forgiving type of mood. "Five laps- now.", she ordered. The two girls walked away, grumbling.  
"God, talk about nosy", Lizzie quipped, still catching her breath from the race. "I wish they would stop talking about her like that. She's not even here to defend herself.", Josie said with a frown. Hope shrugged. "Still, do you think any of it is true?", she asked curiously. "c'mon, you've got to be curious, Jo." Josie sighed, wrapping her towel around her torso. "I don't know and I don't care", she stated firmly. "All I'm worried about is being prepared for next Wednesday. If we put enough blood, sweat, and tears into this, then maybe- just maybe- we can finally beat those Bellmont snobs and wipe that annoying smirk off Penelope Park's face."  
___________________________________________________________________  
Josie opened her locker, smiling as the piece of paper stuck in her door fluttered to the ground. She bent down and picked it up, excited hands unfolding the paper gently. On it was the same messy handwriting she had grown to love over the last few months, and she traced the letters fondly. Unlike most of the notes her secret penpal left for her, this one was relatively short: "Happy Wednesday, Jojo. Have a wonderful day, and good luck at your meet tonight. I'll be watching." As always, the note was signed off with a small doodle of a heart and her penpal's moniker- mermaid. Josie sighed, leaning against her locker. The thought that her anonymous penpal would be in the crowd was exciting, but Josie wished desperately that she knew who she was. She never asked, in fear of upsetting the girl or scare her away. It was unfair that she knew exactly who Josie was, and yet Josie didn't even know her first name. Still, Josie would take what her mermaid friend would offer to her. She didn't know why, but their secret conversations had become a highlight of her day, and she wasn't ready to give that up.  
"What are you doing?", Lizzie asked, startling Josie from her thoughts. She quickly slipped the paper into her binder, slamming the locker door shut. "Nothing.", Josie responded, slinging her bag higher up her shoulder. "C'mon", she urged, distracting her sister. "We can't leave Hope with Landon for too long. Poor girl will pass out from embarrassment, and I don't want a repeat of tenth-grade Swim camp today." With Lizzie's attention away from her and onto Hope, Josie slipped the note into her pocket, smiling. She would eventually find out who her mermaid was; At that moment, however, she was just happy to go with the flow.


	2. Chapter 2: The Meet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie gets another note, Lizzie is pissed, and an unexpected person comes to Josie's defense

The pool area was full by the time they arrive, packed full of nervous swimmers, cheerful family members, and stressed out coaches. Josie feels the first pangs of anxiety as she watches the other teams stretch and practice their strokes. It's times like this that she wishes that her parents cared more about their daughters than they did about your jobs. At least then she would have someone in the stands, cheering her on and relieving some of the pressure off her tired shoulders. From the look on her sister's face, she could tell Lizzie was feeling the same way. She watched as Hope ran to Lizzie's aid with jealousy. No one had yet to even notice Josie shaking with nerves, or bothered to ask if she was okay. She pushed the selfish thought away, excusing herself from her team to get changed for the meet.  
When she returned, she found her towel laid neatly on the bench, a familiar piece of stationery paper settled gently on top of it. She picked it up and unfolded it, shielding it from the view of the other swimmers. On it was a doodle of a cute little dolphin- their mascot- and a short reassurance: 'Don't worry so much, Jojo. You're going to do great; You always do.' It was signed with the normal sign off, Mermaid. Josie looked around the room, wondering who had been daring enough to leave the note in such a public place. She joined Hope and Lizzie at the edge of the pool, beckoning for them to come closer. "Someone left a note on my towel. Did you see who left it?", she asked, earning confused looks from the two girls. Hope and Lizzie turned to face each other, then stared back at Josie. "I set your towel out a few minutes ago", Hope admitted, tucking her auburn hair back into her swim cap. "I didn't see anything after that. Did you see anything, Liz?" Lizzie shook her head no. "Wait, someone sent you a note? What did it say?" Before Josie could respond to her sister's interrogations, the buzzer sounded for the meet to begin. All the swimmers clamored to their respective line-up sheet, anxious to know who they would be up against, and in what category they would be swimming in.  
To nobody's surprise, Josie had been placed into the 500 freestyle race. She groaned inwardly; That certain category was Penelope Park's forte. It was inevitable that they would be pitted against each other- again. Beside her, Lizzie's chill demeanor changed, and she stormed off away from the group without a word. Josie watched her go, debating if she should be the one to try to diffuse her sister's fiery temper. Before she could decide, however, Hope stopped her. "Let her go; She's pissed because they put her down in 200 for backstroke.", she explained, her arms crossed. Josie bit her lip. It was understandable that Lizzie wasn't happy. Backstroke was her worst category. "They have me up against some freshman from Celtbrook.", Hope stated with a devious glint in her eyes. "So this should be an easy day for me." "Well, I wish I could say the same.", Josie quipped, staring across the pool to where her rival was sitting. She caught Penelope's eye for a split second, but she looked away before she could catch sight of the girl's annoyingly infamous smirk.  
"Ouch", Hope commented, patting Josie's shoulder. "Up against Park again? I mean, not unexpected, but totally not ideal." Josie sighed, shrugging in a way that said 'what can you do?' "I can deal with Penelope, okay?", she assured her, sitting up a little straighter. She pointed to where their teammate was getting ready to compete. "C'mon, Kat is going up; Let's go cheer her on." Hope turned toward the meet, her attention off Josie for the moment. She sighed with relief, clapping for her teammate as the buzzer sounded.  
_________________________________________________________________  
"How does it feel to come second yet again, Salvatores?", a random girl in a Bellmont school windbreaker sneered. Josie bit her tongue, her hand firmly on Lizzie's arm to avoid the blonde from lashing out. "Oh yeah? Well, your suits are ugly!", Sadie Michaelson retorted, causing the opposing team to snicker at her failed comeback. Josie tried to ignore the approaching team and return to the safety of the bus, but the Bellmont co-captain stepped in front of her, blocking her path. "Penelope wiped the floor with you, Saltzman.", the girl stated matter-of-factly, bringing a flush of embarrassment to Josie's cheeks. "It's no wonder- look at how tight your swimsuit is. Your fat ass couldn't even keep up." Josie dug her nails into her palms, trying to stop the flood of tears threatening to fall. She stayed silent, waiting for the horrible moment to end. "There are no fat girls in profession swimming, you know? Such a pity." Lizzie stepped forward, her already foul mood escalating. "That's it!", she exclaimed, raising her fist to strike the girl. Josie grimaced, waiting for the chaos to follow. Fortunately, however, the impending fight was broken up by an unlikely mediator, who stepped in between the two teams- Penelope Park herself.  
"All of you, get on the damn bus!", Penelope yelled, her voice loud enough to make even Hope flinch. "We already did what we came here to do; And you-", she said, pointing to the offending girl. "You've earned yourself towel duty, indefinitely." The Bellmont girls obeyed, and in a matter of moments, the parking lot was deserted except for the Salvatore team and Penelope. The latter girl opened her mouth as if to say something, but she decided against it at the last moment. Instead, she sent Josie an apologetic look before turning around and walking away. As Penelope boarded the bus, Josie caught a glimpse of her bag- a bag decorated in pink and purple, and almost resembling the scales of a mermaid.


	3. Chapter 3: The Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie is sad, Hope and Lizzie find out about Josie's penpal, and Mermaid makes a bold move

For a Friday afternoon, Josie's mood felt seriously unlike her. She felt drained as if all the energy in her body had been sucked out with a bendy straw. If Josie was being honest, she had been feeling increasingly depressed since the meet. She was used to sore muscles and a little fatigue, but it felt as if a grey cloud was constantly hanging over her head. She knew it was silly to take what the Bellmont girls had said to heart, but she couldn't help but wonder if maybe there was a little truth in their rude comments. She hadn't noticed herself gaining any weight, but maybe everyone else could tell, and just hadn't told her to spare her feelings. Josie looked in her locker mirror, frowning. She couldn't see any significant change in her appearance, but something felt different. She made a mental note to squeeze in some time for the gym over the coming weekend. Maybe if she just lost a few more ounces...  
"What are you doing?", Hope asked, her eyebrows raised in curiosity. Josie shook her head, quickly switching out her notebooks and closing the locker door. "Nothing. Just lost in my thoughts, I guess.", she admitted. Hope stopped her, rubbing her thumb over Josie's forearm. It was something Hope usually did when she wanted to talk about something serious with her, but didn't know quite how to bring it up. When Josie looked up, Hope's eyes housed concern, a stark contrast to the normally unbothered girl. "Hey, is this about what that Bellmont bitch said to you?", she asked, her voice gentle. Josie nodded reluctantly, embarrassment making her feel smaller than she already was. It wasn't a secret that Josie didn't think very highly of herself even on the best of days, but she didn't want Hope- her confident, collected best friend- to know just how low her self esteem truly was. "You're beautiful, Jo.", Hope reminded her. "Anyone who thinks differently is obvious blind- and lost their other senses, too." Josie smiled, endeared by her friend's concern. "Thanks, Hope.", she said, hugging Hope close. When they pulled away, Hope was smiling again. "If I was into girls, and if Landon didn't exist, I'd so totally date you.", Hope admitted, making Josie laugh for the first time in days. She smacked the taller girl's arm playfully, rolling her eyes. "Only in your wildest dreams, Michaelson."  
_________________________________________________________  
"I swear to god, Elizabeth, if you make us watch step up one more goddamn time I will step up my foot into your ass.", Hope warned, earning an annoyed huff from the blonde Saltzman. Josie giggled at their banter, turning the key in the lock and pushing open the door. She dropped her backpack to the floor, kicking off her shoes. "I'm picking this time!", she hollered, grasping the remote and waiting for the bickering and objections that were sure to follow. She was surprised when she was met with silence. She searched through the available titles, only pausing when Lizzie and Hope joined her minutes later. "Is there any way I can convince you guys to watch a rom-com with me?", she asked, looking up at her sister and best friend. She was surprised to be met with confused and angry looks on their faces. "When were you going to tell us, Jo?", Hope asked, sounding hurt. "Tell you what?", Josie said in confusion. Her stomach dropped before Lizzie even held up a folded slip of paper, her name printed on it with neat letters. Josie's jaw dropped open in shock and betrayal. "Where did you even get that? Did- did you read something addressed to me?!" "It was stuck in the mail slot!", Lizzie yelled in defense. "I didn't know what it was! Besides, you can't be mad at me because I'm already mad at you!" Josie sighed with frustration- her secret...whatever it was had been revealed. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't think it was that important." Hope looked at Lizzie, before sitting beside Josie and giving her her full attention. "It's okay, Jo. Just... start at the beginning."  
_______________________________________________________________  
"And for the last six months now I've gotten maybe 2-3 notes a week", Josie explained, finishing her story. "I still don't get why you never told us. I mean, c'mon Jo, we're your family.", Hope reminded her, stealing a piece of popcorn from the bowl in Lizzie's lap. Josie brought her knees to her chest, shrugging. "I don't know, I guess I liked having something that was just mine, you know?" "I guess I can understand that.", Lizzie admitted, her anger at her sister dissipating. "Still, you don't know who this person is, Josie. It could be anyone. Oh my god, what if it's a teacher!" All three girls grimaced at the possibility. "I definitely wouldn't put it past Mr. Bjergsen. He's creepy as hell", Hope joked, making Josie groan and Lizzie fake a gag. "No, you guys don't understand.", Josie said, shaking her head. "This person...they're just amazing. They're smart- like, crazy smart. A writer too. They've written me a few poems before." Josie smiled at the memory. "She's corny, too. A really big goofball. She makes me laugh so easily." Hope eyed Josie curiously. "She?", Hope inquired, urging her on. Again, Josie just shrugged. "I always assumed it was a girl.", she admitted. "She always signed her letters with the same thing- Mermaid." Lizzie and Hope squealed with excitement, jolting Josie from her thoughts. "She had to be on the swim team then!", they exclaimed, proud of their revelation. "I bet it's Jenna Gilbert. She always has her eyes on you.", Hope guessed. Lizzie scoffed at the idea. "Maybe it's Sadie- it would explain why she's never had a boyfriend." Hope looked at her in horror. "Gross, Liz! That's my cousin!", Hope objected, tossing a pillow in her direction. While the two girls debated who the mystery person could be, Josie cuddled under her blanket, stealing the last of the popcorn from Lizzie. Hope and Lizzie could debate all night between themselves, but Josie was content with leaving her Mermaid anonymous, where she felt comfortable.  
Even if a small part of her was wondering who exactly they were, too.


	4. Chapter 4: The Phone Number

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie reads the note, Mermaid might(?) be a stalker, and gay panic ensues.

Josie awoke later that night to the credits playing on the tv. Hope's head rested against her shoulder, and her sister had curled up into her father's recliner at some point during the night. She hadn't remembered falling asleep, but she wasn't surprised at the fact that she did. With everything that she had been undertaking and the events of the week, she had been feeling beyond drained. She sent a quick text to Hope's mom, Hayley, so that she wouldn't worry about her eldest daughter's whereabouts all night. She was just about to head upstairs to her bedroom for a better night's sleep when she realized she had yet to read the new note her Mermaid left her. Suddenly, Josie felt wide awake. She gently removed herself from under Hope, taking the note into the hallway where she would have some privacy. She unfolded it, reading what it contained:  
Dear Jojo,  
Please don't think I'm a stalker or something. I just happen to walk the same way as you after school, and I saw you and your sister go inside one day. Okay, that still sounded stalker-ish. God, I'm screwing this up, aren't I? Here, let me start again. I heard what happened on Wednesday. Even though you lost, I thought you were the best swimmer there. You always look the most at peace in the water, I noticed. Like there's nowhere else in the world you'd rather be. You must have guessed by now that I also am a swimmer. While I enjoy it well enough, there's something about your passion for it that is inspiring to me. It's the most breathtaking sight I have ever seen, watching you swim. I was furious to hear what those girls from Bellmont said about you. You'll be happy to know that I have it on good authority that she got demoted from co-captain because of it. But, Josie, you should never doubt your beauty, okay? It is unparalleled. While some girls are beautiful outside, they have ugly insides. I've seen that kind of girl a lot. But you? God, I don't think I've ever seen someone that is so beautiful both inside and out. Your heart is one of gold, your eyes galaxies. Your hands are gentle, and your smile is kind. And don't get me started on what your body does to me...  
I wish I could give you the answers I know you want, but it's too risky. One day, I'll be able to tell you who I am. Until then, I decided on the best way that we can both communicate together. Listed below is my phone number- seriously, it's a real number. Maybe send me a text? I'll be looking forward to it.  
Always yours, Mermaid.  
Josie looked at the number scrawled on the paper, the butterflies in her stomach fluttering ten-speed. After six months, she finally had a way of saying something back to her mysterious penpal. Still, she was nervous. What if she wasn't what they expected? What if she was too awkward and said the wrong thing? She paced around the room, almost dialing the number before deciding against it at the last second. It was risky to have a way to contact her Mermaid; She would be vulnerable. In the end, however, her curiosity won over her nerves. She typed in the number and a small message before quickly hitting send before she could back out. "Here goes nothing.", she whispered to herself, biting her nail nervously. She didn't expect Mermaid to reply so quickly, but- to her surprise- only a few minutes passed before she got a reply.  
Josie- 1:17 AM- You know, only a stalker would have to keep stating that they're not a stalker.  
1XXX0429- 1:23 AM- Well, hello to you too.  
1XXX0429- 1:23 AM- I started believing that maybe I got the wrong house  
Josie- 1:25 AM- Right address, but the wrong twin. My sister found it first.  
Josie- 1:25 AM- That was an interesting thing to explain.  
Mermaid- 1:29AM- Yikes. Sorry about that.  
Josie- 1:31 AM- It's okay; You couldn't have known my sister would be so nosy.  
Mermaid- 1:33 AM- You know, it's nice having a reply from you. Normally it's just me, sleepless nights, and badly written letters.  
Josie- 1:34 AM- Hey, I like your notes. They're honestly the highlight of my day.  
Josie- 1:34 AM- Wait, does this mean no more locker letters? :(  
Mermaid- 1:36 AM- No, of course not! Can't disrupt our routine now, can we? ;)  
Josie- 1:37 AM- Okay, cool. I was worried we'd turn into normal penpals now.  
Mermaid- 1:38 AM- Honey, we're anything but normal.  
Mermaid- 1:38 AM- Besides, I like writing to you. I always imagine that cute little smile on your face when you read them.  
Josie- 1:40 AM- Hey, It's not that cute.  
Mermaid- 1:40 AM- Oh, it very much is. Your smile is infectious, Jojo. I think you should embrace it.  
Mermaid- 1:45 AM- You're blushing now, aren't you? ;)  
Josie- 1:46 AM- ...would it matter if I denied it?  
Mermaid- 1:48 AM- No, not really. I know you too well, babe.  
Josie- 1:50 AM- That's completely unfair. You know exactly who I am, but I know nothing about you. I don't even know your gender.  
Mermaid- 1:51 AM- Last I checked, I'm pretty much a female. But, gender is just a social construct, my dear.  
Josie- 1:52 AM- You make a good point. Still, I wish I knew more about you. :(  
Mermaid- 1:56 AM- Hey, I'm sorry; You're right, I'm being unfair. Tomorrow, okay love? You can ask me as many questions as you want, apart from my name. For now, you should sleep. I know I practically am.  
Josie- 1:59 AM- Alright. Have a good night.  
Mermaid- 2:03 AM- Goodnight, Jojo. Sweet dreams.  
Josie returned to the living room, curling back under the covers. She could hardly sleep, knowing in the morning she would learn more about the mystery girl that just might have stolen her heart.


	5. Chapter 5: The Questions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope gets on everyone's nerves, Josie finds out more about Mermaid, and Shakespeare makes a slight appearance.

"So", Hope said with a yawn, stretching her arms above her head to relieve the built-up tension in her back. "Was she everything you dreamed of and more?" Josie ignored Hope's sarcasm, placing a bowl of cereal and a spoon in front of her. "Very funny, smartass.", she intonated, rolling her eyes at the girl. "Not that it matters or anything, but yes. It was nice talking to her. Well, texting her." A smile ghosted across Josie's face, which was not unnoticed by Hope. "As weird as your relationship with her is, I'm happy for you Jo. Just be careful." Josie nodded her understanding, holding her cup of tea between two cold hands. The two of them sat in silence, except for the clinking of Hope's spoon against the bowl. Josie enjoyed these quiet moments when it was just her and Hope. As annoying as the auburn-haired girl could be, she was her best friend. She loved her, and Hope's presence had always been a comfort to her. In a lot of ways, her and Hope were alike; It was no doubt that, on some level, they were supposed to be in each other's lives. But Josie also loved Hope for how passionately she loved and protected Lizzie. Though neither of the temperamental girls could see it themselves, Josie knew - on some level- they were soulmates.  
"Move your ass, Michaelson", Lizzie shouted, her footsteps descending the stairs. Hope groaned, giving Josie a pained look. "What's all that about? Lizzie's never up before noon.", Josie commented, taking a sip of her tea. "Your lunatic sister signed us up for some yoga class. The only class available is at the crack of fucking dawn." Lizzie ran in before Josie could say anything, tossing a sports bag at her. "I swear to god, Hope, if you don't get your ass in that car-" "God, don't get your panties in a bunch, Saltzman. That's MG's job.", she joked, causing Lizzie to turn bright red. Satisfied at the blonde's embarrassment, Hope put her bowl in the sink before giving Josie a playful kiss on the cheek. "Breakfast was great, Jo. See you later." She grabbed the bag, turned around, and exited the kitchen. Lizzie sighed in frustration, throwing her arms up in an 'I give up' manner. Josie giggled, further irritating her sister. "Are you going to be okay here by yourself?", Lizzie asked, grabbing the car keys from the kitchen counter. "You can still come with us if you want." "No thanks, Liz. You and Hope have fun getting your zen on; I'll be okay here for a few hours." Lizzie accepted her answer, hugging her twin quickly before following Hope out the front door. Josie cleaned the dishes in the sink and wiped down the table, ignoring the temptation to message Mer, as she had so affectionately started to call her. It was just past eight in the morning, and Josie didn't want to seem too eager texting her first thing in the morning. Luckily, before she could torture herself anymore with waiting, her phone buzzed in her pocket.  
Mermaid- 8:17 am- Good Morning, Jojo. I don't know if you're up yet, but I wanted you to have a nice message to wake up to. I'm looking forward to our talk later <3 xoxo  
Josie- 8:19 am- Good morning; Did you miss me that much? ;)  
Mermaid- 8:20am- Always  
Mermaid- 8:20 am- I didn't expect you to be up so early. I should have known you were an early bird.  
Josie- 8:20 am- I'm usually not, but Hope was hungry and she feels bad about going into other peoples' fridges. Even though she's pretty much family over here.  
Mermaid- 8:21- You two seem like good friends. I always see you together at meets.  
Josie- 8:23 am- I've known Hope my whole life. My mom and her dad were friends before we were born, so we grew up together. I think we got closer after her dad died, though. Hope and her little sister stay over a lot because her mom travels for work.  
Mermaid- 8:25 am- I'm sorry to hear that. About her dad, I mean. I kinda get what it's like not to have one- I barely see mine. He's always off to practice or another competition. He makes promises to see me more, but we both know that he can't keep them.  
Josie- 8:25 am- That's awful; I'm sorry.  
Mermaid- 8:26 am- It's okay; It's for the best that he's not around much. They don't want to admit it to us, but my mom and dad fell out of love years ago. My sister likes to blame me for it, but I just don't think they want to be together anymore. My mom is more of a free spirit, and my dad is level headed and meticulous about literally everything. They just don't fit each other.  
Mermaid- 8:27 am- I'm sorry, I'm venting. You don't want to hear about my family's drama  
Josie- 8:28 am- No, it's okay! I'm happy you trust me enough to tell me; I know it must be hard for you. You can talk to me about anything. I promise :)  
Mermaid- 8:29 am- See, this is why I love you. (message not sent)  
Mermaid- 8:30 am- You're too sweet, Jojo. I'm really happy I got up the courage to send you that first note, as cheesy as it was.  
Josie- 8:30 am- "Roses are red, violets are blue, You might not know me, but I know you"  
Mermaid- 8:33 am- Don't remind me lol It took me all day to come up with that, and it still sounded like garbage.  
Josie- 8:34 am- It's the effort that counts. Besides, you've gotten much better at it.  
Mermaid- 8:35 am- What can I say? You inspire me. "O for a muse of fire, that would ascend the brightest heaven of invention, A kingdom for the stage, princes to act, and monarchs to behold the swelling scene!"  
Josie- 8:36 am- I never took you for a Shakespeare girl.  
Josie- 8:37 am- "For where thou art, there is the world itself, and where though art not, desolation."  
Mermaid- 8:38 am- "Who could refrain that had the heart to love and in that heart courage to make love known?"  
Josie- 8:40 am- "The lunatic, the lover, and the poet, are of imagination all compact."  
Mermaid- 8:43 am- "My bounty is as deep as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite."  
Josie- 8:45 am- "These words are razors to my wounded heart"  
Mermaid- 8:47 am- "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate."  
Josie- 8:49 am- "Then come kiss me, sweet and twenty."  
Mermaid- 8:51 am- One day I will; God, Josie, you don't know how badly I want to see you right now  
Josie- 8:52 am- You don't know how badly I want you here too.  
Mermaid- 8:53 am- You'll hate me if you knew who I am. (message unsent)  
Mermaid- 8:84am- I'm not ready to let this go (message unsent)  
Josie- 1:17 pm- Are you okay? I hope I didn't scare you away.  
Mermaid- 1:28 pm- No, it's not that at all. I've just been a little busy with work. I'm sorry, I'll text you when I'm off.  
Josie- Alright. Have a nice day <3  
Josie waited for a response, but it never came. She could feel a shift in the dynamics of their relationship. Her mermaid was scared of something- scared of her- and she had no idea why. What was she hiding? Josie had no clue. She put her phone down on the table, wrapping her arms around herself. What if all of this was too good to be true? Was it foolish to believe that a stranger could love her? Was it stupid to love her back? Most importantly, who really was the person she had given her heart to?


	6. Chapter 6: The Fairgrounds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie feels alone, Penelope Park comes to the rescue, and Alaric wants to strangle both of his daughters (Hope too.)

Josie wandered around the park for an hour, shivering inside her sweater. She had known that coming to the fall festival with Hope and Lizzie was a bad idea. The two girls had run off together with MG and Landon soon after they arrived, leaving Josie to keep herself company. This would have been fine had her phone not been dead and it being past their curfew. Her father was going to kill her for sure. Still, she couldn't just ask someone to use their phone; She had anxiety asking a waiter for another napkin earlier at lunch, for Christ's sake. So, her only other option was to wander the fairground, hoping to spot her friends among the crowd. She cursed herself for not bringing a heavier coat with her as her mother said to. Entering one am on a Sunday morning in September, it was freezing. She wrapped her thin jacket around her, trying to keep her body heat inside it. It was ineffective. Josie started debating if she should make the long trek home, alone in the dark, when she felt a tap on her shoulder.  
"Well, it's about time!", she grumbled at whom she assumed to be Hope. "I've been looking for-" She stopped mid-sentence, her eyes meeting Hazel ones, black hair cut into a long bob just meeting two slim shoulders, and a signature smirk she knew so well. It was the last person on the planet Josie wanted to deal with right now- Penelope Park. "I didn't expect you to be here, Saltzman. This isn't even your part of town." Josie sighed, gritting her teeth as she braved another cold gust of wind. Penelope reached out hesitantly, touching her cheek with a warm hand. "Jesus Christ, Josette, you're colder than a damn popsicle.", She commented, unzipping her jacket. She put it over Josie's shoulders, but the taller girl shrugged it off in defiance. Penelope gave her a pointed look, but Josie could see what she could only describe as concern in her eyes. "You're going to get sick, Josie. Please; Just take the jacket." Seeing no other choice, Josie put the jacket on, relieved to have the extra warmth. "Aren't you going to get cold?", she asked, and Penelope shook her head no. "Don't worry about me- I'm used to the cold. It's the only perk of growing up in fucking Belgium." Josie awkwardly put her hands in the jacket's pockets, not knowing what else to say.  
"Where's your sister? Aren't you two attached at the hip?", Penelope joked, but it only further annoyed Josie. "I don't know- she took off a while ago." Penelope frowned, her demeanor softening toward the girl. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, my friends ditched me too. They're still pissed I demoted Kelsey." Josie looked at Penelope with a confused expression; She was surprised that Penelope had punished the girl for what she said to her. "You didn't have to do that.", she said, and Penelope dismissed her words immediately. "I don't train bullies, Josie.", she explained. "We go to meets to kick your asses, not literally kick your asses." Josie couldn't help but laugh at the joke. She hated to admit it, but just walking around with Penelope, talking to her so candidly, was surprisingly enjoyable. "Well, I appreciate it. No one's ever stood up for me like that besides Lizzie and Hope.", Josie admitted, pushing her hair back behind her ears. Penelope smiled, looking over at Josie. "It was no big deal. I just didn't think you deserved that." The two girls were quiet after this until Josie looked down at her watch and remembered just how late it was.  
"Shit", she cursed, catching Penelope's attention. "Is everything okay?", she asked, and Josie shook her head no. "Uh, can I borrow your phone? I need to call my dad, and mine is dead." Penelope handed it over, and Josie quickly dialed the number. "Josette Parker Forbes-Saltzman!", he father yelled through the speaker, making both girls cringe. "We have been trying to get a hold of you for hours. Where are you? Where is your sister?" "She's with Hope, dad. They left me- again.", she admitted, a tinge of sadness in her voice. "I'm sorry dad; My phone died. I'll be on my way home now." Alaric sighed on the other end of the line. "Find your sister and Hope, and meet me by the front of the park. I'll be there in 30 minutes." And with that, he hung up. Josie dialed Lizzie's number, and when she didn't answer she called Hope's. The girl picked up on the second ring. "Hope's phone, Hope speaking.", she greeted, and Josie cringed when she heard loud music and laughter in the background. "Are you serious, Hope? You ditched me for a house party?", she shouted, more hurt than angry. "Shit- I thought Lizzie got you.", Hope slurred. Josie's eyes widened in realization. "You lost my sister?!", she exclaimed. "Where the hell are you?", she asked, and Hope reluctantly told her the address. She hung up, practically throwing the phone at Penelope. "I have to go. thank you.", she said in a rushed goodbye, before taking off down the street.  
___________________________________________________________________  
"I can't believe you two", Josie grumbled quietly, stumbling with her sister up the stairs. Hope, soberer than Lizzie, didn't respond. Josie knew that she felt bad, as she should, but she wasn't in a very forgiving mood. In the morning, they'd talk and everything would be okay- they could never be mad at each other for very long- but Josie wasn't in a very forgiving mood at that moment. She let go of her sister when they reached the bedroom, and a half-asleep Lizzie crashed onto the mattress. Josie started untying the laces of Lizzie's boots, look over at Hope in annoyance. "A little help would be nice", she mumbled, and Hope wordlessly untied the other boot, letting it drop to the floor with a soft thump. Josie covered Lizzie with the blanket and then sat on the edge of the bed, yawning. "Hey, I'm sorry Jo. I honestly thought that Lizzie went to get you.", Hope apologized, taking off her shoes. "Let's talk in the morning, okay?", Josie said, squeezing Hope's hand as a sign that, though she was mad, she and Hope were still okay. "You stay here with Liz. I'll sleep in the guest room." Hope didn't argue with Josie, climbing into the bed next to Lizzie. "Goodnight, Jo." "Goodnight Hope", Josie whispered, closing the door behind her as she exited the room.  
When Josie had gotten ready for bed, she turned on her now half-charged phone. Multiple missed messages and texts popped up from her parents, making her cringe thinking how worried they must have been. Another was from Lizzie, asking her where he was. And the last was from her Mermaid, sent only twenty minutes ago. Josie opened the last message, revealing the picture that her Mermaid had sent her. It was an image of the sky, where the stars were shining brightly. The moon was out, and it looked like the whole night sky was dancing with life. It looked like it was taken near the fairground because she could see the shadows of the colorful lights on the grass. Below, a poem accompanied the picture:  
Mermaid- 3:23 am- "Yours is the light by which my spirit's born: - you are my sun, my moon, and all my stars." The sky and this quote made me think of you tonight. I'll have to bring you here someday.  
Josie- 3:46 am- Wow; It's beautiful. How did you take such a clear picture? You can hardly see the stars near my place.  
Mermaid- 3:49 am- I have my ways. Mainly, a very expensive camera and a little creativity.  
Josie- 3:53 am - It's like magic.  
Mermaid- 3:56 am- Anything for you, baby.  
Josie- 4:00 am- I needed this tonight; thank you. It's like you always know how to make me feel better.  
Mermaid- 4:02 am- Is everything okay? Is there anything I can do?  
Josie- 4:04 am - No, I'm fine. My sister and Hope were just being annoying today.  
Mermaid- 4:06 am- How so?  
Josie- 4:10 am- They just like to ditch me when something better comes along. Sometimes I feel like they only hang out with me because I'm Lizzie's sister. That's all that anybody ever sees me as.  
Mermaid- 4:12 am- Hey, you're more than just Lizzie's sister, okay? You're smart, beautiful, and your heart is so open and pure. Anyone who doesn't see how lucky they are to have you don't deserve you to begin with.  
Mermaid- 4:17 am- I just wish you loved you like I do (message not sent)  
Josie- 4:18 am- No one has ever told me that before.  
Mermaid- 4:21 am- Well, then I will. Because you deserve to hear how wonderful you truly are, Jojo.  
Josie- 4:26 am- Can I ask you a question?  
Mermaid- 4:32am- Of course  
Josie- 4:35 am- Why did you pick me?  
Mermaid- 4:37 am- Honestly? I don't know.  
Mermaid- 4:39 am- I don't know why I like you, Josie. I just know that I do. That's why I sent you that note. I was afraid to talk to you in person; I was scared of rejection. I never expected anything like this- this connection with you- but I'm happy to have it. Even if I can't have you in person, this is ours. No one can take that away from us, right?  
Josie- 4:43 am- You do have me, though. God, I want to be yours. (Message Unsent)  
Josie- 4:44 am- I just wish I knew who you were...  
Mermaid- 4:45 am- I'm sorry, I'm just not ready.  
Mermaid- 4:47 am- By regionals; I promise you'll know me by regionals.  
Josie- 4:53 am- I can live with that.  
Mermaid- 4:58 am- I have to go now; You should get some sleep.  
Josie- 5:02am- Alright; goodnight <3  
Mermaid- Goodnight, Jojo. Sweet dreams.


	7. Chapter 7: The Gym

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope and Lizzie fuck up (Again), Josie pushes it too far at the gym, and Mermaid tugs at Josie's heartstrings.

"Holy shit, I feel like I've been hit by a semi-truck", Hope groaned, her hands covering her eyes to shield them from the bright lights. Josie sighed, sliding the packet of Aspirin over to the hungover girl. "You know this is your fault, right?", Lizzie stated, causing Hope to give her an offended glare. "MY fault? You're the one that downed those tequila shots like they were fucking juice boxes!" "Well, sorry I'm not a lightweight like you. Two cups of vodka and you were practically swallowing Landon's face.", Lizzie hollered, shuddering at the memory of Hope and Landon making out on a random couch at the party. Hope opened her mouth to say something else in her defense but was cut off by an annoyed Josie. "Will you two stop it? You're both at fault.", she said, looking from her sister to Hope. "You shouldn't have gone to the party when we were supposed to be hanging out together.", She reminded her, pointing at Lizzie accusingly. She turned back to Hope. "And you shouldn't have had Raf drive her there!" Both of the scolded girls grew quiet, not having a good enough argument to defend themselves. Josie let out a heavy sigh, grabbing the car keys from the glass bowl by the door. "Where are you going? Josie!", Hope implored, but Josie was too annoyed to give her an answer. She closed the door behind her, making it known to both Hope and Lizzie that she was still angry with them. Hope and Lizzie looked at each other guiltily. They had fucked up badly this time. They only knew one way to say sorry to Josie, and show her they meant it.   
They were going to have to bake a pie.  
__________________________________________________  
Josie upped the speed of the treadmill, pushing herself harder than she usually did when she was this tired. With every mile that the treadmill counted, Josie felt a little lighter- both physically and emotionally. She needed this. Between the stress of starting a new school year and dealing with Lizzie and Hope, she could feel every muscle in her body aching with pent up stress. Normally she would stop at just a few miles, but she decided to hold out just a little longer before taking a water break. Every time she said one more mile, she had run it before she knew it, and she pushed for one more. By the time she was done, she had run 15 miles, and her lungs burned with the effort of breathing. She had pushed it too far; She knew that. But the satisfaction it gave her made her believe that her suffering had been worth it. If her swimsuit fit just a little bit looser, it would be worth it. She leaned against the wall, trying to catch her breath. She ignored the burning in her legs, reminding herself that running was healthy and that the pain would go away soon enough. She took another sip of water, preparing herself to go back to the treadmill.  
"Putting in some work, huh Saltzman?", a familiar voice said, causing Josie to look up. Penelope Park stood in front of her, wearing just a sports bra and a thin pair of leggings. If Josie wasn't already out of breath, she was sure that the sight would take it away for her. Josie hated to admit it, but Penelope Park was gorgeous, and she cursed herself for the blush she knew was spreading across her cheeks. She prayed to god that Penelope would just assume she was flushed from running. "Uh, yeah", Josie managed to get out between pants. "D-do you come here a lot?" Penelope chuckled, and the sound made the butterflies in Josie's stomach flutter about. "No, not really. I was visiting my cousin Rowan- she's a huge "gym rat".' Josie nodded, swallowing down another drink of water. Penelope looked at her quizzically. "Are you okay? You're, like, really red." "I uh...I think I might have pushed a little too hard today, that's all." Penelope looked over at the treadmill, hazel eyes widening when she saw the number of miles Josie had run. "You think you pushed yourself too hard? Josie, you just ran more than a half marathon."Of course, Josie already knew this, but it sounded bad coming from someone else's mouth. "I'm okay", she assured Penelope, who was not convinced. "I just need to get home and eat something." She grabbed her bag from the floor, slinging it over sore shoulders. "I'll see you around, Penelope", she said, but Penelope grabbed her wrist to stop her. "Don't do this to yourself, Josette. Just trust me- it's not worth it." Josie pulled away, rougher than she had meant to, and walked away from the concerned girl. She got in her car, closing the door and leaning against the steering wheel.  
What was she doing? She had pushed herself so hard, not even realizing it. Yet, it felt so good; She hadn't felt this light in years since she was a kid. Working out wasn't bad for her- it was healthy for her. What did Penelope know? She didn't even know who Josie was. Josie shook her head, berating herself for thinking so stupidly. Josie was fine. She was just overthinking, just like her sister always said she did. She started the car, turning the radio up to drown out her thoughts. She didn't need her mind working against her right now. She was fine. There was nothing wrong with her.  
Josie was fine.  
_____________________________________________________________________  
"Aren't you going to eat, Josie?", Caroline asked, passing the bowl of mashed potatoes over to her husband. "Or at least take some of the pie Lizzie and Hope worked so hard to make today?" Josie shook her head, moving her fork around her plate. "I'm not hungry.", she lied, pushing the plate away from her. Caroline looked to Alaric, then to her daughter. "Well, alright. You may be excused, Josette." Josie got up, taking the plate with her. She scraped the contents into the trash, placed the dish in the sink. She jogged up the stairs, collapsing into her bed. She had a major headache, and her body was sore. She ached for sleep. Just as she was dosing off, a new message popped up on her phone. It was from Mermaid.  
Mermaid- 7:19 pm- "Can't you see how I ache for you? How I smile when you smile, how I laugh when you laugh, how I cry when you cry? Can't you see how I long for you? How I dream of you? How my heart is touched by your pain? Can't you see how I love you, and every aspect of your sadness too?"  
Mermaid- 7:20 pm- I wish you saw you as I do, Jojo. One day you will, but until then I'll love you for the both of us.  
The tears began falling down Josie's cheeks like waterfalls. She needed a hug, but not from her mom, or Hope, or Lizzie. No, she wanted a hug from a person she had never met, but who she felt she had known her whole life. She felt so alone, but knowing that her Mermaid was just a text away comforted her. It would never cease to amaze her how in sync they were, how they were intertwined while so far apart. It was like they vibrated on the same frequency. And Josie liked that.  
No, she loved that.


	8. Chapter 8: The Real Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope and Josie have a heart to heart, Josie makes a promise, and the girls get a surprise visit before swim practice

"I don't know how you guys do it", Lizzie said with a sigh, throwing her arms up in frustration. "Do what, Liz?", Hope asked, drying the water from her hair. "Backstroke- it just feels wrong. Swimming backward? It's stupid, right Jo?" Josie shrugged, not looking up from the place where she was stretching on the floor. Lizzie and Hope looked at each other, the latter biting her lip nervously. It had been a week, and while Josie said that she had forgiven them for ditching her, Hope and Lizzie both knew that something was up with her. She had barely talked to either of them and when she did it was curt blunt replies. It scared them, seeing Josie act so out of character. Neither one of them wanted to admit it, but they wondered if maybe Josie's new attitude was because of something more than their mistakes. "Are you okay, Jo?", Lizzie asked, lightly squeezing her sister's shoulder. Josie, dazed, just nodded her head as a reply. "I'm just trying to focus, okay?", she snapped. Lizzie backed up quickly, snapping her hand back as if Josie's words had burned her. Josie sighed heavily. "Look, Our next meet is in two days and I want to be prepared.", She explained, standing up from the floor. "You two should be more focused on that then tracking my every move." Josie walked away, leaving Lizzie and Hope in a state of shock. "What was that?", Hope asked rhetorically, crossing her arms across her chest. "I have no idea", Lizzie admitted, her concern evident. "Maybe she just needs some space. You know how she gets before meets." Hope shook her head, watching as Josie dived into the water with determination in her eyes. She wanted to believe Lizzie; She wanted to believe that in a few days, Josie would snap back to her self- the bubbly girl full of life, warmth, and light. The girl she knew. Unfortunately, Hope knew better.  
Something was seriously wrong, and she was going to get to the bottom of it.  
________________________________________________________________  
Hope- 9:15pm- I'm outside your door. Come let me in.  
Hope- 9:20pm- C'mon, Jo. It's fucking cold out  
Hope- 9:23 pm- I know you're home. I see the light on in your room.  
Hope- 9:27 pm- alright, Jo. You've left me with no choice.  
Josie rolled her eyes, closing the messaging screen and turning over in bed. She had barely settled down again when she heard knocking at her window. When she turned around, Hope was balancing on a tree branch, one hand gripping the tree while the other banged on the glass. Josie groaned, getting out of bed to reluctantly let Hope in. The shorter girl hopped through the window with relative ease, sighing as the warmth inside the house heated her cold skin. Josie returned to the bed, crawling under the covers. She hoped that maybe if she ignored her, Hope would get bored and leave her; She had no problem doing it any other time. Instead, she felt the bed shift when Hope got in the bed next to her. They laid there in silence for a while; It had been so long since one of them said something, that Josie assumed that Hope had fallen asleep. Just when she was drifting off to sleep, Hope finally spoke. "You know, I fuck up a lot", she says, almost to herself than to Josie. "I mean, I'm always the one getting us in trouble, Lizzie is my sidekick, and you are the one that gets us out of it." Josie turns over towards Hope, showing her she was listening. "It's always been like that, Jo. You're like, the good angel and me and Lizzie are the fallen ones. Sometimes I feel like I don't deserve you because you're so pure and I'm...well, I'm broken. I have been since my dad died. It's easy to be around Lizzie; we're both a little evil, it seems. But with you? Sometimes I feel like I'm no good for you." Tears fell from Hope's lashes down to her cheeks, her eyes fixed on a spot on the ceiling. "We shouldn't have left you at that fair, Jo. It was wrong of us. And I'm sorry, Jo. We don't treat you like we should sometimes. I know it hurts you, and it hurts me seeing you hurt. But knowing I did it? That kills me, Josie." A strangled Sob escapes Hope's chest, and Josie pulls her into her arms, letting her cry into her shirt. She knew that she needed to hear this, but she also knew that Hope needed to say it. Hope was rarely vulnerable like this- and when she was, it was only with Josie.  
"I know you're sorry, Hope. I meant it when I said I forgive you", Josie assured her, running her fingers through Hope's hair. "And you're not broken, okay? You're thoughtful and kind, and you're good, Hope." Josie sighed, holding Hope closer. "I love you, Hope; You're like my sister. And nothing- nothing, okay?- will change that." She wiped the tears from Hope's eyes with her sleeve. "We all stumble and fall, but I'll always be here to help you back up." Hope held out her pinkie finger to the girl. "Do you promise?", she whispered, her voice hoarse from crying. Josie smiled, linking her pinkie with Hope's. "I promise."  
____________________________________________________________  
"Ah! Lizzie!", Josie exclaimed, holding her hands up to shield herself from the wave of water Lizzie was splashing her with. "Stop!", she exclaimed, laughing despite her protest. Hope swam over to the twins, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Are we double-teaming Josie?", she joked, causing Josie to gasp. "This is betrayal!", she yelled, right before another wave of water crashed down over her. She enjoyed days like this; days where they arrived earlier than the other girls for practice and were able to enjoy just playing in the water for a while. As much as Josie loved competing, she liked the days where they could just be kids again, splashing each other and playing Marco polo. It reminded her of the times when they were younger when meets were fun instead of nerve-wracking. It reminded her of a time where she was truly carefree, in and out of the water. It made her feel like a child again.  
"Oh my god", Hope whispered, looking over into the stands. Josie turned her head to look, but Hope stopped her. "Don't look now, but I think Penelope Park is watching you." Josie, curious, looked out into the stands. Sure enough, Penelope was sitting in the bleachers, that signature smirk on her face. "I said don't look!" "What is she doing here?", Lizzie sneered, frowning at the girl's presence. "She doesn't even go here!" "She's just scoping out the competition.", Hope inferred, kicking her feet out gently in the water. "I mean, there's no law saying she can't." "But it's an unspoken law, Hope", Lizzie expressed angrily. Josie lifted herself up and out of the water, standing up. "Where are you going?", Hope asked, her eyebrow raised in curiosity. "I'm going to go see what she wants.", Josie stated nonchalantly. "With any luck, maybe I can get her to leave." Hope and Lizzie looked at each other, then at Josie. "Well, good luck with your suicide mission, Jo." "Yeah, it was nice knowing you.", Lizzie joked. Josie rolled her eyes at their dramatics, walking over to the bleachers where Penelope was sat.  
She expected the snarky Penelope that she had seen at meets, the infamous smirk annoyingly plastered on her face. Instead, she found Penelope alone, her arms wrapped self consciously around herself. She was not smirking- she wasn't even smiling. She looked wrecked. As she got closer, Josie realized something that shocked her to her core. Behind a veil of black hair, Penelope's cheeks were streaked with tears, her makeup smearing down her cheeks. It was a sight Josie never thought she'd see. Penelope- confident, sassy Penelope Park- was crying.  
And she didn't know why, but it broke Josie's heart.


	9. Chapter 9: The Facade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie tries to help Penelope, and she ends up learning a lot about the girl in the process.

Josie wasn't used to seeing Penelope like this, so disheveled and wrapped up in a sweater two sizes too big for her slender frame. She didn't even look up as Josie approached, her stoic eyes shiny with unshed tears. Her arms were wrapped tightly around herself, and she was wearing a pair of earbuds that were blaring music at full volume. Josie tapped her shoulder, and Penelope removed them, reluctantly turning her attention to Josie. "Hey, are you okay?", Josie asked gently, refraining from reaching out to touch the distraught girl and comfort her. Penelope just shrugged, her eyes downcast to her sneakers. Josie sat down next to her, silently waving at Lizzie and Hope to let them know that they should go ahead and start practice without her, now that the other swimmers were arriving. They nodded their understanding and turned their attention away from the two girls. Knowing her team was in good hands, Josie turned her full attention back to Penelope. "Do you want to talk about it?", she said, silently encouraging the girl to speak her mind. Again, Penelope shrugged. Josie sighed, realizing that getting the raven-haired girl to open up to her was going to be harder than she expected. "I can't help you if you won't talk to me, Penelope." "Then don't help me", Penelope snapped, squeezing her arms tightly. Normally, Josie would be offended by Penelope's tone, but she knew that the sullen girl wasn't trying to be rude to her. No, this anger was coming from a place of deep hurt and frustration, and the only way Penelope knew how to express it was through a snarky attitude. It made her wonder how much she truly knew about Penelope- the person she thought she knew, she realized, was just a clever facade. Face to face with the infamous Park daughter, she looked almost normal- human.  
"I'm sorry", Penelope whispered, playing with the beads of the bracelet around her wrist. "I just...I came here looking for my cousin, but she was already gone. I didn't know where else to go." Fresh tears fell from Penelope's eyes, but she wiped them away roughly before they could stain her flushed cheeks. "I shouldn't have come here; Maybe I should leave." "No, it's okay.", Josie assured her, earning a shocked look from Penelope. "Everyone deserves a safe place. You're safe here, Penelope. Don't mind them." She gestured to the rest of the Salvatore swimmers, who were looking up at the two of them is confusion. "They're harmless. Honestly, Penelope, you can stay here as long as you like." "Why are you being so nice to me?", Penelope questioned, overwhelmed by Josie's concern. "We're supposed to be rivals - Isn't this betrayal to your team?" "We're not swimming right now.", Josie explained, smiling. "We don't have to be enemies out of the water too, Penelope." Penelope mulled over her words; It was like that thought had never occurred to her. "Well, thanks", Penelope said awkwardly. "Shouldn't you get back to your team, though?" Josie shook her head no. "I think Lizzie and Hope can take over for a day. I want to make sure you're okay." "I'm fine. I don't want you to get in trouble because of me." Josie looked from her team, then to Penelope. "Well, then I guess it's a good thing I'm the captain. Here, I make the rules." Josie's boldness in her words surprised herself, and from the look on Penelope's face, it surprised her too.  
Penelope glanced down at her phone, sighing heavily. "Rowan isn't answering", she mumbled, her head in her hands. "I don't know what to do. I can't go home." Josie put a hand on Penelope's arm, interrupting her frantic thoughts. "I can drop you off there if you want", she offered. Penelope shook her head no. "I can't ask you to do that- it's on the other side of town." "You're not asking me", Josie reminded her, knowing she backed Penelope into a corner. "I'm offering. I just want to make sure you're safe." Penelope thought it over, biting her lip nervously. "C'mon, Penelope. I honestly don't mind", Josie assured her, sensing the girl's hesitation. Penelope sighed heavily; She knew she had no other choice, especially since it didn't seem like Rowan would answer anytime soon. "Alright", she agreed, earning a smile from Josie. Josie stood up, and Penelope followed suit. Josie handed Penelope her bag- it was the same one Josie had seen the night of the meet. "Don't worry- others tend to say I'm pretty good company. I'll even let you pick the radio station." Penelope smiled slightly, and Josie was inwardly proud of herself for lifting her mood even a little bit. She smiled back, leading her away from the pool room and out of the school.  
Maybe Penelope Park wasn't as bad as she thought. ________________________________________________________________  
"I appreciate this, Josie.", Penelope admitted, finally relaxing now that it was just the two of them. "Anyone else would have just left me there." "I know what it's like to feel alone", Josie admitted, flicking on the turn signal. "You don't deserve that." "Still, for you care about someone like me...it means a lot." "What had you so upset?", Josie asked, carefully navigating the subject since she knew it was a sore one for the girl. Penelope sighed. "Just my family; My parents weren't happy with my times at the last meet- since then, they've just been down my throat about everything they can think of." Josie's eyebrows crinkled in confusion. "But your times were perfect! You won the meet for your team." Penelope laughed, but it was completely humorless. "They're not as good as theirs, or even Paisley's. Therefore, not good enough for someone with the Park name." Penelope swallowed hard, leaning against the car window. "I'm not like them, you know? I'm just average. They pride my sister because she takes after them- she's perfect. Me? I'm usually just the forgotten one." Penelope's words hurt Josie's heart, especially because she related to them. "You're anything but ordinary, Penelope", she told her, and Penelope turned her attention to Josie. "You're probably the best swimmer I've ever seen in my life. You have so much drive, so much determination, it makes every else look like novices in comparison." Josie shook her head, appalled by the thought that Penelope was anything less. "Your family is wrong, okay? You don't have to live up to their expectations- you just have to live up to your own."  
Josie's words stunned Penelope, causing her to be silent for the rest of the drive. Every time Josie looked over, she could see that Penelope was thinking about what she said. She knew that it was the first time she had ever heard those words, and it made her wonder just what kind of people Penelope was surrounded by. Considering that Penelope had felt so alone that she went to a rivaling school for a minute of peace, Josie assumed that there weren't very many people that cared about Penelope at all. It disgusted Josie- if anyone deserved to hear how amazing they were, it was Penelope. She stayed quiet, letting Penelope think. Neither girl spoke until Josie turned into the driveway of the address Penelope had given her. "I know what you were doing- at the gym, I mean.", Penelope admitted, making Josie's heart sink. "You don't have to live up to anyone's expectations either, Josette. You're perfect, exactly how you are. I just think you should know that." Penelope got out of the car, closing the door behind her. She knocked on the door, and someone pulled her in before Josie could even say goodbye. Josie pulled out of the driveway, driving home in a dazed state.  
She felt guilty, judging Penelope just like everyone else around her had. Just in the little time she had had with her, she could see that Penelope wasn't the rude, snarky girl that everyone feared. She was nice- kind, even. Penelope was just like everyone else- she got insecure, she felt pain, and she was lonely. It hurt Josie, thinking of how Penelope had felt so alone, and no one had noticed, seeing only what they wanted to see of her. Josie knew she had to do something, now that she had seen behind the disguise Penelope was so used to wearing. She never wanted Penelope to feel the way she had felt that day again. It was clear to her what she had to do: she was going to have to befriend Penelope Park.


	10. Chapter 10: The Invitation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope gets teased, Penelope shows up, and Josie gets a special invite.

Josie followed Hope and Lizzie around the sidewalks of Mystic Falls, holding the shopping bag in her hand. She was exhausted, having been on her feet most of the day while Lizzie and Hope dragged her from store to store. While they both shared a love for shopping, Josie hated it. Still, they had insisted on bringing her with them, encouraging her to buy something for herself. After a lot of persistence, Josie had decided on a new dress, even though she didn't like it. It wasn't that the dress was ugly or anything, but she didn't like how it looked on her. Even when Lizzie and Hope had commented on how good it looked on her, and practically begged her to buy it, she still felt like it didn't fit her. It felt too small- suffocating, even- and she was happy when she could take it off and put her sweatshirt back on. Hope and Lizzie didn't notice Josie's internal struggle, and she was grateful for that. The last thing she needed was for them to be concerned, and turn Josie's issues with her body into a bigger problem than it was.  
"Hey, we should go to the Mystic Grill", Hope suggests, causing Lizzie to laugh and give her a knowing look. "Yeah, so you can see your boyfriend.", she teased. Hope slapped her arm playfully, her cheeks tinging pink. "For your information, he's not even working today. I am just craving a milkshake." She looked back at Josie, who was walking a short distance behind them. "What do you think, Jo? It'll be on me." Josie kept walking, but inside she was frozen solid. A milkshake was a lot of calories, and Josie had been doing so well on her diet. She didn't want to mess up her progress, especially when she was just starting to see the results when she looked in the mirror. Still, if she declined, Hope might get suspicious. She forced a smile, shrugging at her friend. "Yeah, we should go", she managed to get out. Hope turned back to Lizzie, a smug look on her face. "Two against one, Liz. Can't argue with that." Lizzie rolled her eyes, sighing heavily. "Fine, Mikaelson. Let's go get you your damn milkshake. But if I hear one word about that thrift store hobbit, I swear to god I'm going to throw it at you." Josie giggled, and Hope shook her head, laughing herself. "Alright, Alright. No talking about Landon. You have my word."  
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"I thought you said Landon wasn't working today", Josie teased, breaking Hope from her trance-like state. "I guess I got his schedule wrong.", she admitted, but the look on her face told Josie that she knew all along what she was doing. "My bad." Lizzie groaned, turning to her sister. "Looks like we get to see Hope make a fool out of herself- again." "Quiet!", Hope whispered sternly. "He's heading over this way." Sure enough, Landon came over to their table, notepad in hand. "Hey, guys- what can I get for you today?", He asked warmly, pen paused above the paper to take their order. The twins watched as Hope tried to stutter out a reply, Lizzie laughing into the palm of her hand as she watched the normally confident girl crash and burn. Josie, taking pity on her friend, leaned forward. "We'll take one Strawberry milkshake, on vanilla, and one peanut butter blast-" "With whipped cream at the bottom?", he finished for her, and Hope nodded shyly. "Coming right up", he exclaimed, walking away to take the next order. Hope let go of the breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. "Not so tough now, huh?", Lizzie joked, finding humor in Hope's humiliation. The girl in question groaned, putting her head in her hands. "I don't know what it is about him.", she admitted. "Whenever he's around, I just lose it." "Well, if it makes you feel any better, Lizzie nearly knocked over Raf last week when she saw him", Josie said, making Lizzie gasp in shock. "Josette!", she shouted, feigning betrayal. "No one was supposed to know about that." Hope and Josie laughed at her annoyance, and Lizzie slumped down in her seat, her arms crossed in anger.  
At the front of the restaurant, the bell sounded, signaling someone had walked in. Josie looked up, her eyes widening when she saw who had just entered. Penelope Park stood with a girl who looked similar to her- Josie assumed this to be the cousin she had heard about- and a few girls that Josie recognized as swimmers for the Bellmont team. She turned in Josie's direction, and her relaxed look turned to one of nervousness. If Josie didn't know any better, she'd say that Penelope Park was intimidated by her presence. It looked as if the girl was about to come over to Josie's table, but someone from her group called her back before she could. With one last anxious glance at Josie, she returned to the group she had walked in with. Josie's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. What had Penelope wanted to say to her?  
The rest of their lunch went by smoothly. Lizzie and Hope were talking about the upcoming Sadie Hawkings dance, and how they were going to ask Landon and Rafael to it. They were so wrapped up in their conversation that they didn't notice Josie's disinterest. Josie would listen for a few minutes, but then her attention would shift over to the table where Penelope was sitting. Each time, the girl was looking back at her. Josie wondered why the girl had such a sudden interest in her; Did she feel embarrassed about their last conversation? Josie didn't know, but she couldn't deny that she was intrigued. She took a small sip of her milkshake that had been melting on the table, immersing herself in Lizzie and Hope's conversation. When Penelope got up from the table, Josie expected her to leave soon after. Instead, Penelope seemed to be heading right in Josie's direction, ignoring the calls of her friends to come back. Josie swallowed hard, her heart beating faster in her chest. She took a deep breath as Penelope approached the table. She didn't know what she expected from Penelope, but the envelope she slid across the table wasn't one of those things.  
"I'm having a party Friday evening", Penelope explained casually. "I'd like it if you came." Josie picked up the envelope, not knowing what to say. Unfortunately, Lizzie spoke before she could collect her thoughts. "There's no way in hell you're getting Josie into your evil lair, Satan", she sneered, ripping the envelope from Josie's hands. "So, you can count her out." "Well, you see, I wasn't asking you. I was asking Josie, and I think she's capable of speaking for herself." Lizzie looked at the girl who dared to talk back to her in shock; Behind her, Hope snickered. Penelope turned her attention to Josie, a coy smile on her face. "Just think about it, okay?", she asked, and Josie nodded politely. Penelope sent one last glare at the other Saltzman twin before sauntering away to where her annoyed friends were waiting for her. Hope grabbed the envelope from Lizzie, opening it before either twin could protest. "Are you seriously thinking about going to this?", she asked, her eyebrows raised in confusion. "You hate house parties." "She was nice enough to invite me.", Josie explained, shrugging her shoulders. "It would be rude not to go." Lizzie sighed in exasperation. "Unbelievable", she muttered under her breath, getting up from her chair and walking angrily out the door. "Lizzie, wait!", Josie called after her, but Hope stopped her. "Hey, I got her, okay? Maybe you should head home." Josie nodded her understand, and Hope squeezed her hand gently before following Lizzie out the door. Josie picked up the envelope from where it rested next to Hope's empty glass. She couldn't help but smile, her mind already made up. She was going to Penelope Park's party.  
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Mermaid- 6:15 pm- So, what are you up to tonight, Jojo? Girl's night in?  
Josie- 6:17 pm- I'm going to a party.  
Mermaid- 6:19 pm- That's pretty out of character for you, love.  
Josie- 6:24 pm- I guess I wanted to be a little adventurous tonight.  
Mermaid- 6:27 pm- What are you wearing? I bet you look amazing.  
Josie- 6:30pm- See for yourself ;) (Picture sent)  
Mermaid- 6:32 pm- Jesus fucking christ, Josette.  
Mermaid-6:32pm- I mean, wow. Red is your color.  
Josie- 6:35 pm- Do you think so? I don't like it.  
Mermaid- 6:36 pm- No, it's perfect Jojo. You look incredible.  
Josie- 6:37 pm- Well, thank you <3  
Josie- 6:38 pm- What are you doing tonight?  
Mermaid- 6:41 pm- Not much- just a movie and bed. I don't feel very well.  
Josie- 6:42 pm- Oh no :( Are you okay?  
Mermaid- 6:42 pm- Yes, of course. It's just a cold- I'll be fine.  
Mermaid- 6:42 pm- Enjoy your party, Jojo <3  
Josie- 6:43 pm- Get a lot of rest, okay?  
Mermaid- 6:45 pm- You're cute when you play nurse  
Josie- 6:47 pm- Shush. Go to sleep.  
Mermaid- 6:49 pm- Goodnight, Josie.  
Josie- Goodnight. I hope you feel better soon. <3

Josie pulled up to the Park house, amazed by what she saw. She knew that Penelope's parents were rich, but the house they lived in was huge. Josie quickly realized that this wasn't a normal house party- there were at least 200 people already there. She took a deep breath, bracing herself. She walked up to the door and knocked. She didn't expect anyone to hear her over the loud music playing inside, but to her surprise, Penelope greeted her as the door opened. Penelope smiled. "Hey, Josie.", she said, stepping aside. "Come on in."


	11. Chapter 11: The Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Penelope teaches Josie to dance, Josie meets Penelope's friends, and Penelope and Josie end up in the same bed (just not the way you think)
> 
> I recommend listening to I don't care by Ed Sheeran while reading the dance scene ;)

"That's Brandon Woods", Penelope explained, leaning against the kitchen counter. Josie looked over in the direction she was gesturing to- sure enough, a teenage boy was standing around a table playing beer pong, wearing a sports jacket. "He's the captain of the water polo team at Bellmont. He's a good supplier- not for hardcore stuff; Just weed, mostly- but is otherwise pretty harmless. The girl next to him is his girlfriend Monica. She's a swimmer on my team." Josie assumed she was talking about the girl with purple hair, standing off to the side of the table with an annoyed look on her face. "Monica's best friend Avery is the girl with the piercings. She's a total gossip- which comes in handy until it's about you." Penelope took a sip of her drink, and Josie awkwardly followed suit. "The girl making out with the jock? That's Kelsey, the girl that insulted you." Josie swallowed down the liquor hard, remembering her words. "She's still upset because she got her ass handed to her after that stunt- by me, of course." "You didn't have to do that", Josie tried to say, but Penelope waved her words away. "You don't have to feel bad about that, Josie. It's about time someone put that bitch in her place." Penelope's hand flexed in anger. "I put up with too much of her shit because she was a good co-captain and a hell of a good swimmer. But she went too far, and she had to pay a price." "Seems like you paid a price too", Josie commented, swirling the contents of her cup around. "You lost your co-captain, right?" Penelope just shrugged, that infamous smirk on her face. "It was worth it.", she stated matter-of-factly. "Seeing the look on her face when I demoted her? Classic." Josie was about to say something else, but Penelope's face lit up as the first verse of another song played in the living room. "This is my song!", Penelope exclaimed, grabbing Josie's hand. "C'mon; Let's dance." Josie looked down at their joined hands, feeling an unfamiliar heat journey through her body. She didn't know if it was from being so near Penelope or the alcohol she'd drunk, but she let Penelope pull her into the living room without complaint.  
I'm at a party I don't wanna be at  
And I don't ever wear a suit and tie  
Wonderin' if I could sneak out the back  
Nobody's even lookin' me in my eyes  
Penelope stopped in the middle of the room, moving to the beat in a carefree way. Josie stood awkwardly, not knowing what to do. Penelope laughed, and Josie's cheeks flushed red. "What's wrong?", she asked, and Josie sighed. "I don't know how to dance.", she admitted. Penelope smiled, taking her hand and putting it on her waist. "Just move; here, follow my movements." Josie did as Penelope said to, her movements awkward and shaky. Penelope brought her closer, whispering against her skin. "Relax", she said, making Josie shiver. Josie took a deep breath, relaxing against Penelope. It wasn't so bad dancing with the girl, and she ignored the rest of the eyes on them.  
'Cause I don't care when I'm with my baby, yeah  
All the bad things disappear  
And you're making me feel like maybe I am somebody  
I can deal with the bad nights  
When I'm with my baby, yeah  
Josie enjoyed being so close to Penelope, smelling the girl's floral perfume and the feeling of her hands around her neck. She'd never danced with anyone like this, but the way Penelope moved so fluidly, the happy smile on her face as she danced, and the bubbly feeling in her stomach, it felt like she was free. Penelope surprised her when she twirled her around, and she laughed when she almost stumbled to the ground, but it wasn't in embarrassment. Penelope chuckled as well, pulling her back into herself. "You're getting better at this, Jo.", she commented, and Josie rolled her eyes. "Let's just finish this dance."  
'Cause I don't care, as long as you just hold me near  
You can take me anywhere  
And you're making me feel like I'm loved by somebody  
I can deal with the bad nights  
When I'm with my baby, yeah  
The two girls pulled away as the song ended, both out of breath. Josie stepped back, avoiding Penelope's eyes. The girl put a shaky hand on her shoulder, steadying herself. "You're a fast learner", she said, still catching her breath. "Well, you're a good teacher.", Josie reputed, taking down the last of her drink. "How did you learn to move like that?" "Practice- practice, and a lot of bruising my dance partners' toes.", she joked, bringing a laugh from Josie. The two girls made their way back to the kitchen, where a pair of girls were waiting for them- well, waiting for Penelope. "Hey!", she exclaimed, letting go of Josie to hug the nearest person. "I didn't know if you guys would make it." "And miss a Penelope Park rager? Never", the blonde teased. "Rowan would have come, but she had a last-minute "study group", the brunette girl explained, and Josie assumed from the annoyed look that flashed over Penelope's face that this wasn't a rare thing. "So, it looks like you're stuck with me and Hailey." The group finally acknowledged Josie, the brunette waving at her warmly. "Who's this, Penny?", the blonde asked, but she spoke before she could get an answer. "I'm Hailey- this here is Nikki, and her cousin Tessa is somewhere." "Yeah, Probably making out with her girlfriend", Nikki groaned, feigning disgust. "They were all over each other in the car." "Ah, young love", Hailey said, winking at Penelope. For the first time that Josie had known her, Penelope blushed pink beside her. "Well, enjoy the party you two. You know where the guest bedrooms are if you want to sleep-over." Penelope laced her fingers with Josie's, leading her into the other room.  
By the look of things, the party had gotten to the point of chaos. Every room was full of people, and the noise was starting to get to Josie's head. She held her hand up to her forehead, leaning against the wall for support. Penelope's face fell, and she came to Josie's side. "Are you okay?", she asked, yelling over the music. Josie winced, shaking her head no. Penelope looked around, deciding what to do. She gestured to the stairs. "Let's go to my room. It'll be quieter up there." Josie nodded, letting Penelope take her up the stairs. As they ascended the stairwell, the sounds of the party diminished until it was just a light thumping of the bass. Penelope stopped at the room at the end of a long corridor, pushing the door open with her foot. She ushered Josie in before gently closing the door behind them. Josie, nearly blinded from the pain of her headache, collapsed onto the bed, breathing in the familiar scent of flowers before everything went dark.  
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When Josie woke up, she was still in the same spot she had fallen asleep in, a blanket draped over her body. She rolled over, alerting the girl sitting next to her. Penelope put down the book she had been reading, placing the bookmark between the pages. "Hey, sleepyhead.", Penelope greeted her, her hair now pulled into a messy bun. She was out of the silver dress she had been wearing for the party, exchanging it for an oversized t-shirt that came down to her thighs. "How are you feeling?" "Like shit", Josie mumbled, pushing her hair back from her face. "What time is it?" "Almost two am. I text your sister from your phone- I hope you don't mind. I just don't want you to get in trouble like last time." "No, it's okay", Josie assured her, touched by her concern. "I bet she wasn't very happy." "Oh, she wasn't", Penelope said, turning over to face Josie. "But she was relieved you were somewhere safe, even if it was with me." "She's not that bad, you know.", Josie said in her sister's defense, yawning halfway through her statement. "She's just...protective." "You don't have to defend her to me, Jo.", Penelope told her, smiling at the sleepy girl. "You're cute when you're tired." "I'm not tired", Josie lied, but another yawn proved her wrong. "It's okay- you should go to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up." Josie wanted to resist, but her fatigue caught up with her. She didn't respond, her eyes fluttering closed. The last thing she heard before she succumbed to the lure of sleep was Penelope's gentle voice telling her goodnight.


	12. Chapter 12: The Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie and Lizzie fight about Josie's new friendship with Penelope, Mermaid comforts Josie, and Hope comes to the rescue to patch everything up.

The annoying Twin- 11:15 am- Josette  
The annoying Twin- 11:17 am- You've been in Satan's lair all morning. Is she holding you hostage or something?  
The annoying Twin- 11:22 am- Come home, Josie.  
The annoying Twin- 11:34 am- Josie!!  
The annoying Twin- 11:43 am- If you don't get your ass home right now, I'm going to come to get you.  
The annoying Twin- 11:43 am- Well, Hope will come to get you because she's the only one with a license  
The annoying Twin- 11:44 am- But you know what I mean  
The annoying Twin- 11:49 am- Josie!  
My other half- 11:52 am- Calm down, Lizzie. Penelope just dropped me off.  
My other half- Can you unlock the door? I left my keys last night.

"Well, it's about fucking time Josette.", Lizzie scolded her, staring at the car with tinted windows sitting in their driveway. "Hello to you too.", Josie grumbled, turning to wave goodbye to Penelope before entering the house. "I was just with Penelope; She made breakfast, and I helped her clean up from the party. I'm sorry I didn't call, but you already knew where I was." Lizzie huffed in annoyance, crossing her arms across her chest. "I don't even know why you spent the night there. I mean, I know they say 'keep your enemies close', but that's a little too close Jo." Josie sighed heavily, hanging her coat in the hall closet. "Maybe Penelope's not the enemy, Liz.", she said, and Lizzie's jaw dropped open. "She's your biggest competition, Josie!", she exclaimed, shaking her head at her sister. "She's always been a bitch- to you, to me, to our whole goddamn team- and suddenly you're, what, friends with her?" Josie stopped walking, her hands closing into fists. "She's no good, Josie. She doesn't care about you- she just wants to make you seem weak." Josie turned around slowly, and Lizzie could see the fire in her eyes. She stepped back in shock- in the sixteen years they had co-existed, she had never seen her sister so mad. She realized that she had struck the wrong cord.  
"Yes, Lizzie, she is my friend. She's nice to me. She understands me, something you don't know how to do!", she yelled, and Lizzie swallowed her words down hard. "We're not in the water right now, okay? I'm sorry you don't know how to distinguish competition and real-life since all you ever do is compete with everyone!" Tears welled up in Lizzie's eyes, but now that Josie had started speaking freely, it was impossible to stop her. "I'm always the third wheel between you and Hope. I always feel like the odd one out. Now I have something with someone- a relationship that is my own- and you want to play concerned sister!" "I'm not playing conc-" "God, Elizabeth! You don't even let me speak!", Josie exclaimed, stopping Lizzie in her thoughts. "You don't care about me. You just care about yourself." Lizzie wrapped her arms around herself, feeling like a scolded child. She knew there was some truth in Josie's words, but she never expected to hear them from her sister. She roughly wiped a tear away from her eyes. Josie's features softened, and she stepped forward on instinct to comfort Lizzie. The blonde-haired twin pulled away. "No, Josie. I- I can't even look at you right now." "Lizzie, I'm sorry.", Josie said, and while her voice was dripping with sincerity, Lizzie was too upset to listen to her. She walked away from Josie, running to her room and closing the door behind her.  
Josie hit her fist against the wall, leaning against it as she tried to collect her thoughts. Where had all that come from? she wondered. She had had fights with Lizzie over the years, but never one as explosive as what just occurred. She was ashamed of herself for the way she had made Lizzie feel. She knew that Lizzie would tell Hope, and she knew what side her best friend would pick. She felt so alone, still filled with pent up anger, and the guilt that fighting with Lizzie had brought her. She sighed, retreating to her bedroom and closing the door behind her with a soft thump. She didn't know what to do, so she went to the one person she knew would understand.  
Josie- 12:22 pm- I feel like shit  
Mermaid- 12:23 pm- What happened, baby? Are you okay?  
Josie- 12:25 pm- I fought with my sister. I said some horrible things to her, and I just feel awful about it.  
Mermaid- 12:26 pm- Hey, everyone says things they don't mean, Jojo. I'm sure you've had fights before, right?  
Josie- 12:29 pm- Not like this. I called her self centered and a horrible sister.  
Mermaid- 12:31pm- Ouch. That's...not the best.  
Mermaid- 12:32 pm- But did you mean them?  
Josie- 12:33 pm- No, of course not. I just...my life and Lizzie's have always been intertwined. Her friends are my friends. We hang out at the same places. I just...I want something of my own, and she seems to have a problem with that.  
Mermaid- 12:35 pm- Change is never easy, Jojo. You've been dependent on each other your whole lives. It's a big adjustment.  
Josie- 12:36 pm- I just wish I could take it all back. God, I'm a horrible person, aren't I?  
Mermaid- 12:36 pm- You made an error in judgment, Josie. That doesn't make you evil, or a bad person.  
Mermaid- 12:28 pm- Give her some time to chill, and talk to her when you're both calm.  
Mermaid- 12:31 pm- She's your sister; She loves you. Everything is going to be okay. Trust me.  
Josie- 12:34pm- I do trust you. (Message not sent)  
Josie- 12:35pm- i really hope you're right  
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Hope- 3:17pm- Can we talk, Jo?  
Josie- 3:18 pm- I'm busy, Hope.  
Hope- 3:19 pm- Well, get unbusy. I'm outside your front door, and I don't want to climb up that tree again.  
Hope- 3:19 pm- But I will if I have to.  
Josie- 3:21 pm- okay, okay. I'm coming down now.  
Josie opened the door, coming face to face with Hope. The girl looked concerned, a worried look on her face. She embraced Josie as soon as the door was fully open, surprising the girl. Josie pulled away, looking at Hope confused. "I thought you were here to yell at me." Hope smiled sadly. "No, Josie. I came because I don't think you should be alone right now; And frankly, neither does Lizzie." Josie sighed, walking through the hallway and to the living room. She sat down on the couch, nervously playing with the sleeve of her sweater. "I'm surprised she even cares; She should hate me for what I said." "Josie, stop.", Hope said sternly, putting her hand over Josie's. "Lizzie doesn't hate you. Once she calmed down, she looked a little proud." Josie looked up at her in confusion. "But I said such horrible things." "You spoke your truth, Josie. You made her look at what she was doing, and she feels horrible about how she's been treating you. I do too." Hope bit her lip nervously. "Do you truly feel like a third wheel with us?" "Well, sometimes.", Josie mumbled, not looking Hope in her eyes. "Sometimes I feel like everyone just sees me as Lizzie's sister- the other twin. It's like I'm her shadow." "I'm sorry, Josie. I never wanted you to feel that way.", Hope apologized, holding Josie's hands in her own. "I love you, okay? I love both of you, just as much as the other. You're my family." Josie smiled at Hope's words, her head still down. Hope put her hand under Josie's chin, gently tilting her head up to look at her. "I mean it, Jo. I love you for the amazing, sweet, and loving person that you are. Not as Lizzie's sister- but as Josette Parker Saltzman."  
Josie shifted next to hope, leaning her head on her shoulder. "I know you love me, Hope.", she admitted, looking down at their joined hands. "But it's nice that you care enough to say it." "Of course I care, Jo. I always have", Hope said, running her hands through the girl's hair. "And I always will."


	13. Chapter 13: The Prank

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie gets herself stuck in the middle of a prank war she can't win.

"I think we should break in and fill the pool with soap", Andie Bennett commented, a devious look in her eyes. "It'll take them at least a week to clean that up." "No, we should sneak in and steal all their clothes from the locker room", Ember Salvatore suggested, giggling into the palm of her hand. Beside the pool, Josie rolled her eyes and wrung the rest of the water out of her hair. She hated this time of year- it was two weeks before Halloween, and that meant that the prank war between the Bellmont Academy and Salvatore School was well underway. While most of the Salvatore swimmers looked forward to prank day- the giving of pranks, at least- Josie dreaded it. Yes, most of their pranks were harmless. Last year they filled their team bus with glitter balloons and taped pins near the door. Josie had found it kind of funny, but she hated to think of how long it had taken to clean all of it up. However, that wasn't what Josie dreaded. No, it was the backlash they had received after. When they returned from swim practice the next day and went to shower, every swimmer came out with green hair- the Bellmont swimmers had replaced their shampoo with hair dye. Josie shuddered, thinking of the three weeks she had to walk around with hair that looked like seaweed. This year, the Salvatore girls wanted payback- they were giving it everything they had. Josie knew that no matter what they hit them with, the Bellmont team would be hit ten times harder. She was terrified of what that might mean.  
"What do you think they're planning?", Josie whispered to Lizzie, who shrugged her shoulders with disinterest. "I don't know. I haven't been paying much attention", Lizzie admitted in a low voice. "I'm going to go swim my laps. I'll talk to you later, Jo." With that, Lizzie swam away wordlessly. Josie frowned, watching her sister go. They'd made up from their fight over a week ago, but there was still tension between them. Lizzie seemed to be walking on eggshells around her, and she overall was not acting like the sister she knew and loved. She and Hope had both seen it, but they gave her time to come to them. If they confronted Lizzie, she would just shrug them off anyway. No, they had to wait for Lizzie to come to them- on her terms. Still, pranks were Lizzie's thing; She was usually the one to organize everything- the instigator. With her in such an odd mood, no one else dared to step forward in her place. As much as Josie hated pranks and the backlash that would soon follow, she knew doing no prank was just as dangerous. They would seem weak, not just to Bellmont, but the other swim teams as well. Josie sighed heavily- she knew what she had to do, as much as she despised doing so.  
She swam after her sister, gliding over to where she was sitting with Katalina and some of the other notorious pranksters on the team. Sadie perked up, the amused smile falling from her face. "Sorry, Josie! We were just about to do our laps, I swear!", she explained nervously. "That's not what I came over here for. I was coming over to ask what you guys think we should do for the prank war." The four swimmers, Lizzie included, looked at Josie in confusion and distrust. They knew it was unlikely Josie was serious, but they could not hide their curiosity. "You don't do pranks, Jos. You're, like, the anti prankster.", Ember joked, her eyebrow raised at her cousin. Josie shrugged, forcing a smile. "I might not be for pranks, but I'm all for some team bonding." She wrapped her arm around Lizzie's shoulder. "Especially when my lovely sister is involved." Lizzie rolled her eyes beside her, mimicking Josie's actions with a smile on her face. She looked over at the other girls. "Alright, ladies. What are we gonna do this time? Ember and Kat glanced at each other, then back at the twins. "Come closer. I feel like you're going to enjoy this one." Josie leaned in, listening to the conversation. And as they explained the plan more, Josie felt the faked smile on her face turn into a real one.  
The plan was stupid, for sure; But, it was so stupid that it just might work.  
___________________________________________________________________  
Josie-3:45pm- Tomorrow is prank day  
Mermaid-3:47pm That's between Bellmont and Salvatore, right?  
Josie-3:48pm- Yes, it is.  
Mermaid- 3:49 pm- Not much of a war when they win every year ;)  
Mermaid- 3:54 pm- Ouch, too soon?  
Josie- 3:56pm- ...That MIGHT be true, but it won't be this year.  
Josie-3:56pm have a full.proof.plan  
Mermaid- foolproof, Jojo. It's foolproof.  
Josie- 3:57 pm- No it's not. That's ridiculous.  
Mermaid-3:59pm- Whatever you say, baby girl.  
Josie- 4:00pm- Babygirl. I like that. (Message not sent)  
Josie- 4:02pm- Whatever. All I know is tomorrow Bellmont isn't going to know what hit them >:)  
Mermaid- 4:04 pm- Oh really? And what is this ingenious plan you have?  
Josie- 4:05pm- Not telling  
Mermaid- 4:06 pm- Why?! I want to know!  
Josie- 4:07 pm- In case you're on the Bellmont team, silly. I'm not sabotaging my team.  
Mermaid- 4:09 pm- That's unfair. and mean.  
Josie- 4:11 pm- Yeah, but you love me tho  
Mermaid- 4:12 pm- Yeah, I do (Message not sent)  
Mermaid- 4:15 pm- Touche, miss Saltzman  
Mermaid- 4:15 pm- I guess we'll see tomorrow who has the upper hand ;)  
Josie- 4:17pm- Game. ON.  
Josie- 4:18pm- :)  
______________________________________________________________________-  
"This is ingenious", Sadie whispered a little too loudly. "They're never going to know what hit them." "Shut up.", Lizzie growled, placing her hand over the girl's mouth. "They'll be here any minute, and they will know something is up if they hear you running your mouth." "Where's Josie?", Cat asked in a hushed tone. "She should be back from setting up the last piece." Lizzie looked around the poolroom, spotting her sister hiding in the bleachers above it. She pointed up to where Josie was, and the other girls followed her line of sight. Lizzie ushered them up the stairs to the bleachers, crouching down to where Josie was. "Everything is in place.", she whispered, fidgeting with anxiety. "I hope this works." "Yeah, because if it doesn't we're screwed.", Andie said, biting her nail nervously. Lizzie put her finger up to her lips, shushing them. The four girls settled down on the floor behind the bleachers, peeking out as the Bellmont swimmers came in for their evening practice.  
The girls could hardly contain their nerves as they watched the Bellmont girls swim their laps. Josie was occupied watching one swimmer- Penelope. She looked totally in control, her face stern and her focus on the swimmers' form as a whole. She would watch for a while, call a swimmer over to speak with her, and then send them back. Under her control, Josie could see why the Bellmont swimmers always seemed in sync. She hated to admit it, but Penelope was a good leader- maybe even better than her. Then again, Josie had never wanted to be the captain of the swim team; It had been handed to her after the old captain graduated. For Penelope, however, she was born for it. Josie could see it from the determination in her eyes.  
Lizzie nudged Josie, pointing to the swimmers that were breaking off from the group to towel off. Josie held her breath, watching as the girls disappeared into the locker room. She waited for the chaos that would surely follow. Fortunately, she didn't have to wait for long. Only minutes later did the screaming start, followed by the sound of running feet. The six unlucky swimmers came rushing out, covered head to toe in glitter. Their screams immediately alerted the other swimmers, who snickered behind their hands when they saw the state of them. One stern look from Penelope, however, put them in line very quickly. "It was the Salvatore team!", one angry swimmer said, wiping the glitter from her eyes. "We turned on the shower and we heard a pop in the showerhead- then it was just a glitter explosion!" "It was in the lockers, too. The post-it notes on them were just a decoy!", another swimmer interjected. Penelope looked around, her eyes landing on Josie's hiding spot. Josie's eyes widened, and she pushed the other girls to escape down the back stairwell. They disappeared into Alaric's van, laughing once they were exiting the school parking lot. Josie left feeling satisfied, knowing they had the upper hand.  
She did not know then how wrong she was.  
______________________________________________________  
"Did you see the look on those girls' faces?", Lizzie asked with a relaxed laugh. "They looked like disco balls!" Josie shook her head at her sister, walking through the back doors of the school and turning on the lights to the pool room. Her eyes widened at what she saw, and she didn't realize she was screaming until Andie, Kat, Sadie, and Lizzie were standing at her side, also disgusted. The place was trashed. The towel racks were tipped over, towels splayed messily across the floor. In permanent marker was scrawled on the tiled walls, covered in crude drawings of the Bellmont mascot- a tiger. And, worst of all, the pool was bright red with what Josie could only hope was kool-aid mix. "They call this a prank?", Lizzie exclaimed in anger. "This is going to take forever to clean up!" The other girls grumbled their agreement, at a loss for where to start first. Josie sighed, unlocking the closet holding the cleaning materials. "We better start before school opens tomorrow. If my dad sees this, we're all screwed." Josie opened the door, and a note fluttered down to the ground. Josie picked it up, unfolding it. As always, they were one step behind the Bellmont girls, and they knew it, too.  
Good attempt, Jojo, but not good enough. I hope you don't have any plans this evening >:) - Mermaid  
Josie sighed; It was going to be a long evening.


	14. Chapter 14: The Homecoming Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Penelope invites Josie to her own dance, Lizzie and Josie talk, and sparks fly on Halloween night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The moment you've all been waiting for is here. Enjoy.

"So, how did you like our surprise?", Penelope teased, leaning back and dipping her spoon into the yogurt cup. Josie gave her an annoyed glare, but the corners of her mouth were turned up in amusement. "Not so much. It took seven hours and several bottles of cleaner to clean up." Penelope, despite her best efforts not to, laughed into the palm of her hand. Josie nudged her, shaking her head at the girl. "It's not funny! Had my dad seen that we would have been screwed." "Awe, I'm sorry Josie.", Penelope said half-heartedly. "To be fair, it also took multiple scrubs to get the showers- and my swimmers- clean again." This time Josie couldn't help but chuckle, the image of the Bellmont girls covered in shimmering glitter filling her head. She stared down into her cup, moving the contents around absentmindedly. She liked this- sitting in the ice cream shop near her house, Penelope across from her as they share a scoop of strawberry ice cream. To think, just an hour earlier Josie was debating whether or not to even come. She was determined to keep her promise to herself and befriend Penelope, but going to an ice cream shop? Josie was hesitant. She had been doing so well; She worked out three days a week, watched her calorie intake, and curbed her appetite with water to keep from eating more than she wanted to allow herself. Still, she joined Penelope at the shop; What other opportunities would she have to hang out with Penelope, especially with both of their teams preparing for their last meets before regionals? She originally decided not to get anything, but Penelope coerced her into sharing a cup. Josie mostly just moved her spoon around the cup, hoping upon hopes that Penelope hadn't noticed she never took a bite.  
Josie looked down at her phone, rolling her eyes at the message that was displayed. Penelope glanced from the phone to Josie, her eyebrow raised in a silent question. "It's just my sister.", Josie explains, tucking the phone back into her bag. "She's trying to get me to go shopping with her- she wants me to get a costume for homecoming." "A costume? You usually just wear a dress to those kinds of things.", Penelope commented, leaning her head on the arm she had propped up on the table. Josie shrugged. "Salvatore does things a little different- it's always on Halloween, and we wear costumes instead of the normal formal stuff." "That sounds awesome!", Penelope exclaimed, the twinkle of excitement in her eyes. "Shouldn't you be preparing for it, then? Halloween is just a week and a half away." Josie's nose scrunched in distaste; She knew how school dances went. Hope and Lizzie would be asked to dance, and Josie would be left at a table all night, watching her friends have fun. If she was really lucky, she'd be bringing home the two intoxicated girls and babysit them through the night. No, she'd rather stay home and catch up on Grey's Anatomy. "I don't usually go to those things.", she said, not realizing how sad she sounded. Penelope frowned. "Why not? It sounds like a cool event." "I...I never have anyone to go with.", she admits with a heavy sigh. "I mean, I start out going with Lizzie and Hope, but they ditch me pretty much as soon as we get there." "I could go with you.", Penelope says casually, pushing the empty cup aside. Josie's eyes widened, and shifted in her seat; Was it getting hotter, or was it just Josie? "No- I mean, I can't ask you to do that. I don't want you to feel sorry for me. What would your team say? I-" Penelope stopped the girl's rambling, placing her hand over Josie's shaky one. "Hey, relax Jo. I'm not saying I'll go with you because I feel sorry for you.", she says, a smile blooming on her face. "I'm saying I'll go because I think it'll be a good time, and it beats sitting in an empty house all night. Screw what my team thinks- screw what your team thinks." Penelope chuckled nervously, biting her lip between her teeth. "What do you say, Josie. Will you let me do the honor of being your date?"  
Josie didn't know what to say. Her thoughts were jumbled up, and she couldn't tell if it was because of the sudden jump in temperature, or the feeling of Penelope's hand still covering hers. She knew Lizzie wouldn't approve, or hope- and, god, her team was going to flip. But Josie couldn't bring herself to caring. Not when Penelope was giving her a soft look through fluttering eyelashes, almost nervous of Josie's answer. How could she say no to her? "Sure, Pen.", Josie said, brightening Penelope's smile and calming her growing nerves. "Sound's like fun. You have got yourself a date."  
_________________________________________________________  
"Are you sure about this?", Lizzie asked, opening the makeup case and laying the contents on the counter. "You've never cared about makeup before. Now satan asks you out to our dance and suddenly you want to look like a primadonna." Josie hoisted herself up onto the countertop, letting her feet swing against the cabinet door. "I just feel like looking a little different tonight.", Josie lied, sighing in frustration. "Are you going to give me the third degree about this? Because I can always ask Hope." Lizzie rolled her eyes, opening one of the compacts from her collection. "No way, Jo. I've been waiting for this too long to pass up the opportunity to Mikaelson." Lizzie tapped some of the product onto the brush, blowing off the excess. "Close your eyes- and no squinting!" Josie did as she was told, and Lizzie began her work. Both girls were silent for a while before Lizzie spoke up. "So what's going on with you and Park, Jo?", she asked, wiping some loose product away from Josie's face with her thumb. "Do you, like, have a crush on her or something?" Josie chuckled, earning a scolding from Lizzie. "No, of course not." Lizzie gave her a look that told her that she did not buy Josie's lies. "Look, you can fool Hope, you can fool dad- maybe you can even fool mom- but I'm the other half of you; You cannot fool me." The amusement fell from Josie's face. "I...I don't know what I feel for Penelope, okay? I like being around her, yeah. But I also like being around Hope, and Andie, and Kat and I don't have a crush on them." Josie sighed, shaking her head. "I don't know what makes her so special, but she is. Which is weird, because I'm supposed to be hating her." "Well, when you figure things out, let me know so I can be happy for you." Josie's attention snapped to her sister. "You'll be happy if I- I don't know- date her?" "Josie, I support you no matter what. I'm not Satan's biggest fan, but if she makes you happy, then she's alright to me." Josie's eyes welled up with tears. She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around Lizzie. "Thank you, Liz." "No problem, Jo", Lizzie said, pulling away. "Just don't mess up my work here by crying it all off!"  
An hour later and Josie was ready. She changed into her costume, tugging on the tights and slipping into the dress that came with them; Finally, she put on the witches hat. She looked in the mirror, and for once she was okay with what she saw. Her sister was pretty handy with a makeup brush, she had to admit. Everything looked perfect; Now, she just had to get to the school in one piece. She joined her sister and Hope downstairs, both of them looking like proud parents as Josie descended the stairs. "You look hot, Jo", Hope commented, unwrapping a piece of candy for the bowl by Josie's door. "You were right, Liz. The witch was the perfect costume." "You don't look so bad yourself", Josie said. Hope looked down at her cat costume, rolling her eyes. "I wear this every year." "Yeah, you both look okay, but I'm winning the costume contest this year. Josie had to agree- Lizzie's devil costume was the most thought out of the three of them. Josie wasn't surprised- Lizzie prepared all year for Halloween, and it showed. "We should get going. It's almost seven." "She just wants to get there and see Penelope", Hope teased, and Josie's cheeks flushed red. "Shut up", she said weakly, making both her sister and Hope laugh. As they settled into the car, riding past the lit-up houses and the sound of children screaming, Josie spotted the full moon hanging above the car. She wondered what exactly the night would behold.  
______________________________________________  
As they pulled up to the school, Penelope was waiting outside for them. Josie was stunned by just how beautiful Penelope looked. She was wearing what seemed to be a homemade costume- a sequined top and a pair of leggings that resembled a mermaid's tail when her legs were together. Her makeup was in hues of pink, blue, and green; It shined against the light of the moon. Josie walked up to Penelope, who smiled warmly as she can near. "Hello, Jo. You look beautiful.", Penelope expressed, drawing the color back to Josie's skin. Penelope looked back behind Josie, waving to Hope and Lizzie. "I'm going to steal her for a dance. Don't worry- I'll bring her back.", she joked. Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Keep her", she called out, surprising Penelope. "But if you hurt my sister, all bets are off, Park." Penelope looked from Lizzie to Josie, holding out her hand to the latter girl. "Shall we?", she asked. Josie nodded, grabbing Penelope's hand and walking into the building.  
As soon as they were spotted, a hush fell across the room. Whispers erupted around them, making Josie feel more self-conscious than she already was. She knew what they were saying: why was Penelope Park there? Why was she with Josie? They were calling her a traitor; They were glaring at her like she was the enemy. Josie was about to turn around and leave, but she felt a comforting arm around her waist. "Hey, it's okay.", Penelope whispered into her neck, sending chills down her spine. "Don't focus on them, okay? We're here, whether they like it or not. Let's just have a good time." Josie nodded, letting Penelope's voice lead her away from the intrusive thoughts in her head. The uneasiness followed her around the rest of the night, but the longer she was with Penelope, the quieter it got. She found herself sincerely having fun, dancing with her- even as bad as she was. It was like that night at the party all over again. It would never fail to surprise her the way Penelope's mere presence could turn her mood around. After they had danced for a while and were both out of breath, Penelope laced her hand with Josie's, a smile on her face. "Do you want to go outside and get some air?", she asked, and Josie nodded. The two of them escaped out the back of the school, hiding around the side of the building where Josie knew no one would find them.  
"I had a lot of fun.", Josie admitted, leaning against the wall. "That's the most fun I've ever had at one of these." "Good, I'm relieved. I was afraid you weren't enjoying yourself." Josie laughed. "I'm finding that it's impossible not to have a good time around you." That statement caught Penelope's attention, and Josie cursed herself for speaking without thinking. She looked down, avoiding Penelope's gaze. "I mean- uh, what I meant was-" Before Josie could react, Penelope leaned forward and captured her lips with her own, her hands coming up to cup Josie's face. The shock of it whip-lashed Josie, but she found herself kissing back, her hands tangling into Penelope's hair. What felt like minutes to the girls ended in just a few short seconds, and Penelope pulled away for air. Both girls were left panting, still tangled up in each other. "I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking." "Stop talking and kiss me.", Josie whispered into the air around them. Penelope didn't let logic get in the way. She brought her lips back to Josie's, getting lost in the feeling of being so close to the girl.  
All the questions, doubts, and panic would come later. At that moment, however, they were just two girls fighting the feeling of falling in love.


	15. Chapter 15: The Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry.

Josie was avoiding Penelope, and they both knew it. Well, maybe not avoiding her- she was just not going out of her way to contact her. It helped that they didn't have each other's phone numbers. Their only contact was through Penelope's cousin Rowan, so every time she saw the petite girl in the halls or at lunch, Josie ran in the opposite direction. She knew it wasn't right- she didn't even want to think about what messed up signals she was giving Penelope. All she knew was that she wasn't ready to face her, or the other person she had been avoiding- Mermaid. She had been ignoring her texts for almost a week, too ashamed to even look at them. She didn't know exactly what she had with Mermaid, but whatever it was would surely be broken if she found out about her kissing Penelope. She was stuck- in a dilemma that she didn't see a clear solution to. On one hand, she had Mermaid- her hopeless romantic, a person who knew her so well. She had a history with her, one that she had come to enjoy. Was it worth it to give up that for Penelope?  
God, Penelope. Where was she even to start with her? She had felt something in that kiss- like it was her first one all over again. She didn't know if she loved Penelope, per se- but some strong feelings were there. Penelope was physically there, and she was beginning to know her for more than her swimming rival. Penelope was funny, considerate- she made Josie feel at peace. While Mermaid gave her that feeling of being loved- of being seen- Penelope gave her the physical attention she craved. If she gave up one of them, she would be left with a missing piece in her life. Then again, if she wasn't careful, she could lose both of them. She groaned, slamming her book shut. She was too worn out to study now.  
"Heya", Hope greeted, barging into the younger Saltzman twin's room. She sat down on the bed, offering Josie a chip from the bag in her hands. Josie shook her head no, tossing the book aside. "I'm not hungry", she mumbled, pulling her knees to her chest. "I can't even look at food right now." "What's got you so disturbed, Jo? You haven't been yourself in days.", she commented, taking another chip from the bag. "I said I wouldn't pry, but I'm starting to get worried." "There's nothing to be worried about", Josie assured her, playing with the hem of her shirt. Hope raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "Yeah, sure. This-", she said, gesturing to Josie's state of being. "does not come on from nothing. So, spill. Was it Penelope?" Josie avoided Hope's eye contact, answering the girl's question. "Ooh, something happened!", Hope exclaimed, bouncing on the bed excitedly. "Wait, should I be kicking her ass right now?" Josie's attention snapped to Hope, and she hurriedly shook her head no. "No, she didn't do anything wrong. She did everything right." Josie put her head in her hands. "She kissed me, okay? We kissed, and now I'm screwed." "I don't see how that's a bad thing, Jo! At least it means she feels the same way.", Hope stated in confusion. "What's stopping you?" "What about this thing with Mermaid?", she said. Hope scoffed in disbelief. "I know it sounds silly, but we have a good connection, Hope- a strong one. I can't just break it off. It'll hurt both of us." "Josie, Penelope is sitting right in front of you!", Hope exclaimed, shaking her head. "Whatever you had with this mystery person, it's dying. You don't want to admit it, I get that. But you can't wait for a fantasy when the reality is staring you right in the face." Josie sighed; She knew Hope was right, but she still didn't like it. "I know what I have to do- I just hate that it has to end like this." Hope patted Josie's knee in a gesture of comfort. "It'll all be okay, Josie. If she loves you as much as she says she does, she'll understand." Josie nodded, picking up her phone and looking at her messages for the first time in days.  
Mermaid- November 3- Jojo  
Mermaid- November 4- Josie, please  
Mermaid- November 6- What is wrong? Did I do something wrong?  
Mermaid- November 6- I need to talk to you  
Mermaid- 4:13 pm- It's time I tell you who I am.  
Mermaid- Meet me at the Regional meet. 8 am. In front of Bellmont.  
Mermaid- I'm so sorry, Josette. (Message not sent)  
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Josie- 7:59am- You're here, right?  
Mermaid- 8:09 am- I'm just getting here. Where are you?  
Josie- 8:13 am- I'm by the front of the school. You should be able to see me when you pull up.  
Mermaid-8:17am- Josie, please don't be mad.  
Mermaid- 8:17 am- I wanted to tell you, I swear. I just never knew how.  
Josie- 8:20 am- You're scaring me.  
Josie- 8:23 am- Just meet me at the front of the school.  
Josie waited; She waited for a lot longer than she expected to, but she eventually realized that Mermaid wasn't going to come. To say that she was disappointed was an understatement. She thought that after all the time they had had to know each other, that she would want to see her. Maybe everyone was right; Maybe Mermaid was just a silly fantasy. "Hey, Josie.", a voice said timidly. Josie looked up, coming face to face with an anxious-looking Penelope. She mustered a smile. "Hey, Pen. Do you want to sit down?", she asked. Penelope didn't say anything; she just wordlessly sat next to Josie. "Are you okay? You look nervous." Penelope tensed beside her, her nails digging into her arms so hard it looked almost painful. Josie's smile faded, replaced by concern. "Penelope, what's going on?" What happened next was the last thing Josie expected; Penelope Park started crying. What started as a few stray tears built up to sobs that wracked the girl's body. Josie was in utter confusion, not knowing what to do. "Penelope", she said, pushing the girl's black hair away from her face. "Penelope, you need to breathe." Josie tried to calm her down, but the girl was inconsolable. Josie just held her, ignoring the sounds of the meet beginning inside. She ignored everything around her- if no one else was going to be there for Penelope, she would be.  
Eventually, Penelope's sobs quieted to small hiccups. She was able to sit up again, wiping the tears from her eyes. Wordlessly, she put a folded sheet of paper in Josie's lap. Josie looked from the paper, then to Penelope's guilt-ridden face, before unfolding the paper with shaky hands.  
Dear Jojo,  
I'm so sorry- you don't know how hard this has been. I know you feel betrayed, and I don't blame you. I don't blame you if you never want to speak to me again. But, you do need to know the truth. I'm Mermaid. I'm the one you've been messaging this whole time. It wasn't supposed to become this, you know. I always admired you from afar, and I wrote that stupid little note and had Rowan stick it in your locker. I didn't plan on writing any more of them, but when Rowan told me how happy you looked when you got it...I had to. I wanted to be the reason for your smile, even if it was just from a silly little note. It just got messy from there. I never thought you would accept me as the person I am- your rival, a Park. I thought you would reject me. But then something amazing happened- I became your friend.  
I always wanted to tell you. I thought about it so many times, but it never seemed like the right time. I planned to tell you the night of my party, but you fell asleep before I could. I planned on telling you when we went out together, but I didn't want to ruin the smile on your face. I promised myself that I'd tell you at the homecoming dance, but...then you kissed me and all bets were off. God, I've never felt anything like that kiss, Josie. I know you felt something too. I just hope I haven't made you change your mind about me. I hope one day you can forgive me, and maybe everything will work out all right. But for now, all I can say is I love you, Josette. You being in my life has been the best time of my life.  
Your's (If you want me), Penelope Park.  
"This is a joke.", Josie stated, causing Penelope to look up. "Please tell me that this is a joke- that you haven't been lying to me this whole time." The tears welled back up in Penelope's eyes, threatening to fall again. That's when it hit Josie like a ton of bricks- Penelope was Mermaid; The two people she felt she loved wholly were the same person. And that person had lied to her. She got up, shaking her head in disbelief. "Josie, please.", Penelope pleaded, reaching out to touch Josie's arm. The latter girl pulled away, facing the person she loved with a heavy heart. "You lied to me, Penelope. You made me love a stranger and... I'm not sure if I can forgive you for that." She turned around and walked away, ignoring Penelope's heart-wrenching sobs, just as her tears started to fall.


	16. Chapter 16: The Getaway Driver

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope and Josie steal a school bus, Josie gets wasted, and Hope makes a startling admission.

Josie- 8:45 am- I need you.  
Josie- 8:47 am- Hope, I'm not kidding.  
Josie- 8:50 am- Hope Andrea Mikaelson answer your damn phone.  
Hope- 8:54 am- Where the hell are you, Josie? You're up next for the relay.  
Josie- 8:58 am- Fuck the meet  
Josie- 9:00 am- Tell them I'm sick or something. I'm not going in there right now, or maybe ever again.  
Hope- 9:02 am- What the hell happened, Josette?  
Josie- 9:03 am- Ask questions in the car. I need my getaway driver.  
Josie- 9:05am- Do. Not. Tell. My. Sister.  
Hope- 9:07 am- okay, okay. Let me grab my stuff.  
Hope came running out of the front doors, still shrugging her jacket over her shoulders. Josie wanted to cry with relief, but instead, she tossed Hope the keys to the team bus. Hope looked at her in surprise. "You want to steal our team bus?", she asked in disbelief. Josie gave her a pointed look, and Hope raised her hands in surrender. "Hey, whatever you say boss man.", she commented, climbing into the bus and turning the key in the ignition. "Any place in particular?", she asked, and Josie shook her head no. "Keep driving. Just...get me as far away from here as possible." Hope nodded, pulling out of the driveway and onto the main road. Josie settled in the seat behind her, looking down at her phone that had been chiming non stop in her pocket.  
Mermaid- 9:40am- Josie  
Mermaid- 9:42 am- Josie, please. Talk to me.  
-Josie changed this contact's name to Liar-  
Liar- 9:43 am- I'm so fucking sorry, Josie.  
Liar- 9:47 am- It's still me, okay? I'm still the same person.  
Josie- 10:02 am- But which version of you is it?  
Josie- 10:03am- Stop texting me. I need space.  
Hope peered back at Josie through the driver's mirror, frowning. "We should drop the bus back off at the school, and then take your car back to my place. My mom took Hannah to my aunt Freya's. It'll just be us." Josie nodded solemnly. "Yeah, that's fine.", she commented, leaning against the window. Hope sighed. "Who do I need to kill?", she asked, teeth clenched as she flipped the turn signal on. Josie didn't answer, shrugging farther down into the seat and out of Hope's line of sight. She didn't want to talk about it; If she talked about it, that would make it more real. It would solidify the idea that Penelope had been lying to her from the beginning, that the person she had fallen in love with was more of a stranger to her now than before when she didn't even know their name. She took the paper from her pocket, reading it over. There was so much emotion poured out in the letter- it was decorated with feelings and fear in between the lines of simple words. I meant so much, but Josie didn't want to see that right now. She wanted to be pissed at Penelope, but that was hard to do when the evidence of her affections was staring Josie right in the face. She crumpled the note up and threw it at the seat behind her. If it was out of sight, it would eventually be out of mind, right?  
The faster she cleansed herself from everything that was Penelope, the quicker she could stop feeling like her heart had been dragged through the dirt.  
__________________________________________________________________  
"Do you want anything?", Hope asked, leaning against the doorway as she watched Josie settle down on her bed. "A coke or something." "I was thinking of something a little stronger", Josie said, gesturing to the bottom drawer of Hope's dresser. Hope's eyes widened at what she was implying. "Josie, it's barely noon. Are you sure you want to get wasted this early?", she tried to reason with the sullen girl. Josie just shook her head. "I need to get out of my head, Hope.", she admitted. "All that's in my head is her and my heart feels like it's breaking in my chest." Tears started welling in Josie's eyes, and it killed Hope to see her best friend so broken. "Please, I just need to make this stop", Josie pleaded, putting her head in her hands. "I can't deal with this. Please, I-" Hope cut her off, holding onto her arm to steady the girl in front of her. "Hey, it's okay. I understand." She leaned over, opening the drawer and pulling out the bottle of tequila sitting inside. "Let me go get a couple of glasses." Hope was about to do just that, but Josie had other ideas. She unscrewed the lid from the bottle, drinking the liquid straight until Hope took the bottle away. She winced at the burning in her throat but swallowed it down despite the sensation. Hope shook her head, taking a shot from the bottle herself. "Your sister is going to kill me.", she muttered, handing the bottle back to Josie. Josie just shrugged. "After today, she's going to kill both of us. So, we might as well have some fun before she realizes we're gone."  
An hour later, Josie and Hope are lying across from each other on the bed, the empty bottle lying between them. Josie's vision is fixed on a speck on the ceiling, but it's a lot blurrier than she remembers it to be. The smoke from Hope's blunt floats up to the ceiling and scatters in the air; Somewhere between the early afternoon and now Hope had brought the weed out in hopes of calming Josie's nerves, but her memory of when or how exactly that occurred are fuzzy. She sighs heavily, her heartbeat pounding in her ears. She feels like she's melting into Hope's bed, the only thing keeping her from emerging into the cotton sheets is Hope's legs tangled with hers. "How do you feel?", Hope asks from the other side of the bed. Josie holds her hand up in front of her face, studying it intently. "I don't know", she says. "Kinda like I'm floating, kinda like I'm sinking to the bottom of a cup of coffee. What about you?" Hope laughs, and it suspends in the air around them. It reminds Josie of the way butterflies would flutter around, and that made the butterflies in her stomach go haywire. "I'm not as faded as you are, babe.", she says, inhaling deeply. "I feel pretty good, though." "This was a good idea.", Josie admits, not completely sure if she believes her own words. "I'm glad we did this." Hope shifts on the bed, sending vibrations through Josie's body. She shudders. "What were you trying to escape from Jo?", Hope asks timidly. Josie sighs. "Penelope is Mermaid." When Hope is quiet, Josie assumes she just didn't hear her. She's about to say it again, but Hope speaks before she can. "I so call it- your sister owes me 20 bucks." Josie sits up at this, her eyes wide. "You knew?", she exclaims, her annoyance growing when Hope just gives her a knowing smile. "It was pretty obvious, Jo. She wore a mermaid costume for Halloween, for fuck's sake." Josie groaned, covering her eyes with her arm. "So everyone knew but me?" "Well, your sister wasn't very convinced. She betted on Katalina.", Hope disclosed, turning over to face Josie. "You honestly didn't know? I thought maybe you were just pretending not to know, not that you were this oblivious." "I had no idea", Josie admitted, biting her lip. "Well, I mean...maybe a part of me knew. I just- I didn't want to think that she was lying to me. especially while I was-" "Falling in love with her?", Hope finished, earning a solemn nod from the girl. "She wasn't lying, Jo. She was just scared.", Hope explained in Penelope's defense. "I'm not excusing her from what she did- it was wrong, plain and simple. But I can kinda see where she's coming from, too." Josie groaned, turning over to face Hope. "Why is love so fucking complicated?" Hope just shrugged. "I don't know, but I do think- on some level- it's worth it."  
This got Josie's attention. "Since when did you become such a romantic?" Hope's eyes widened, her expression like one of a kid caught stealing a cookie from the cookie jar. Josie gasped, shooting up in bed. "Holy shit, Hope. Something happened!" Hope put her hand over Josie's mouth to silence her, even though it was just the two of them. "My god, Josette. Does the whole neighborhood have to hear from you?" Josie removed Hope's hand from her mouth. "Oh, come on Hope. It's just the two of us. Who's gonna hear us?" Hope rolled her eyes, her attention suddenly very focused on the loose thread coming from her comforter. "Landon and I slept together", she finally admitted after a long pause. Josie's jaw dropped wide open. "Wow. How did that happen?" "We ended up dancing at Homecoming. Like, "dancing" dancing.", Hope explained, holding a pillow to her chest. "One thing led to another...and we ended up in the janitor's closet." "The janitor's closet?", Josie repeated, amused. Hope groaned, covering her blushing face with her hands. "Not the most ideal place, I know.", Hope said, shaking her head at the awkward memory of it all. "To be honest, it didn't matter where we were. At that moment, when it was just me and him, it was...pretty perfect." Josie didn't know what to say; She had never seen Hope so infatuated with someone before.  
"Well, I'm happy for you both.", Josie said after a few moments of silence. Hope smiled at her warmly. "Thanks, Jo." She turned over, laying next to Josie, her head in the crook of her neck. "Just...please don't tell anyone, okay? Besides me and Landon, you're the only one who knows. I want to keep it that way- not even Lizzie can find out." Josie mimed zipping her lips, making Hope laugh. Josie giggled beside her. "Of course, Hope. My lips are sealed." Hope held out her pinkie to the girl, and Josie locked it with her own. It was then that Josie realized no matter what came her way, at least she'd always have Hope by her side. Which was handy, because she could already feel the terrible hangover coming her way.


	17. Chapter 17: The Rumors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Salvatore school basks in it's win at Regionals, Josie is pissed at everything, and the swim team holds tryouts to fill their open spot.

By Monday morning, Salvatore school was buzzing with excitement. There wasn't a single student who hadn't heard what happened at regionals on Saturday, and everyone was curious about the reason why both Penelope and Josie- hands down the best two swimmers in the county- were absent from the meet. As Josie passed through the halls, she saw the wandering eyes and hushed whispers in the halls. Her ears burned, red and hot from the embarrassment of knowing that she was being blatantly talked about. Normally, her sister would come to her defense, but she was too busy soaking in the praise of being the one to finally beat Bellmont to even notice how uncomfortable her sister was. Josie kept her head down, protected under the intimidating looks Hope sent in the direction of anyone who dared to try and approach Josie or spoke her name a little too loudly. It made the girl wonder why she had even shown up- it was impossible to focus on her work, making studying a difficult feat. She should have just faked being sick, staying home under the covers and sulking about how downhill her life had gone in just the past few days. Unfortunately, she couldn't do that; She was still team captain, and she was expected to be at practice later on in the day. No matter what mood she was in, she had to be strong for her team. Especially when they were holding tryouts to gain enough members to qualify for the state meet. With all the excitement of their big win, Josie was sure that the list of applicants would be a long one.  
"How are you hanging in there, Jo?", Hope asked, smacking her tray down on the table and sliding into the seat next to Josie. The sullen girl just shrugged, pushing her untouched tray away and grabbing her water bottle instead. She was too upset to be hungry. If that small pang in her stomach could be curbed with water, what was the point anyway? "At least you won't have to see her until March- hey, slow down.", Hope said, grabbing Josie's arm. Josie wiped her mouth, putting the emptied bottle down. "Sorry, I think I pushed myself a little too far in the gym. Is it hot in here to you?" Hope shook her head no, stabbing a piece of food with her fork. "No, I think it's just you. Maybe you need to eat something?" Josie swallowed hard, getting up from the table abruptly. "I think I'm going to go hang out in the library.", she lied, picking up the tray. "I'll see you at tryouts." Before Hope could even wave goodbye, Josie rushed out the door, throwing the tray away as she exited. She didn't know why she had lied to Hope, and it left her with a strange feeling of guilt. She shook her head, wiping the sensation from her mind. She had no obligation to tell Hope every little thing she did. Whose business was it if Josie skipped a meal or two? She just wasn't hungry- it wasn't healthy to overeat, anyway. She took a deep breath, stopping to fill her water bottle. She was just overthinking things again, just as she always did.  
"Hey, Jo", Milton greeted her, removing one earbud from his ear. "I was just about to jog around the track a few times. Want to come with me?" Josie smiled, screwing the cap back on her bottle. "Yeah, sure.", she agreed, slinging her bag over her shoulder. "If you can keep up that is", she joked, causing the boy to laugh. "Okay, little J. Let's see what you can do." The two of them walked to the back of the school, setting their bags down. Josie tied her hair back, stretching her muscles out to prepare them for the workout. "Ready?", Milton asked, and Josie nodded with determination. "Ready, Set, Go!" Before Milton could even get the last word out, Josie was sprinting ahead of him. "Not fair, Jo!", he called after her. Josie ignored him, quickening her pace. She could feel the familiar soreness in her feet, the burn in her lungs as she breathed. It was freeing, the second-best feeling next to swimming. Josie laughed for the first time in days.  
If only she could keep running forever, far away from everything weighing her down to the ground.  
___________________________________________________________  
"Alright ladies- welcome to the winter tryouts", Josie said, clapping her hands together to get everyone's attention. "As you know, only one position is available on our team at this time. If you aren't ready to fight like hell for it, I suggest you leave right now." Josie waited, and a few of the girls silently slipped out of the room because of their anxiety. Josie turned back to the remaining girls. "Okay, today we will be timing you for all four categories- freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, and breaststroke. I will be looking at your form as well as your speed- as we all know, speed doesn't always make the best swimmer. It's the technique." Josie gestured to the space open by the side of the pool. "You can leave your towels and bags here; then, you have 15 minutes to warm up however you'd like." Josie smiled warmly at the nervous candidates. "I wish you all luck. See you in 15 minutes." Josie left the girls to their own devices, joining Hope, Kat, and Lizzie in the bleachers. The three girls were already making notes in their notebook, studying the new swimmers' potential. "God, that girl in the blue likes to run her mouth. She hasn't shut up since she got here. That could cause some problems.", Lizzie said, scribbling in the notebook. "The girl with the yellow swim cap is super prepared. That's a good quality in a swimmer." Kat commented. Josie sighed. "I'm not paying attention to that trivial shit. We just need someone who can swim." Josie looked up, watching as Hope's facial expression turned from confusion to surprise. At the same time, any movement in the room ceased. Josie looked down at the swimmer that had just entered the pool area. The first thing she noticed was black painted toenails. The second was tan legs; And lastly, a pink and blue bag resembling mermaid scales. She could hardly believe her eyes. If she was still standing, she's sure she would have fainted. Lizzie leaned in, whispering quiet enough that only Josie, Hope, and Kat could hear.  
"What in the fuck is Penelope Park doing here?"  
____________________________________________________  
"No. No, I refuse!.", Josie argued, her arms crossed firmly over her chest. "You're out of your minds! She cannot swim on my team!" "Jos, just listen.", Kat begged, pinching the bridge of her nose between two fingers. "She's a remarkable swimmer. If we let her go and give it to someone sub-par, we're giving up a practically guaranteed win at State!" "It's Penelope, Katalina! She's a liar, a cheat- she's a horrible person!" Kat sighed in frustration, turning to Lizzie. "Please talk some sense into your sister.", she grumbled impatiently. "I agree with Kat.", Lizzie stated, making Josie gasp. "You hate her, too!", Josie cried in exasperation. "Why in the hell would you want her here?" "We have an advantage, Josie. Do you know what a win would mean for this school? We have Bellmont's secret weapon." Josie put her hands over her face, groaning into her palms. Lizzie put a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Please, Josie. You know I don't beg, but I am now.", she whined. "You can hate her anywhere but here, okay? But we need her on this team." Josie looked from Lizzie to Kat; Finally, she threw her hands up in defeat. "Fine. She can join- but when she fucks everything up, it's on you two." With that, Josie turned around and stormed out of the room. She was so angry that she didn't pay attention, walking right into the person standing near the door. The force nearly knocked Josie to the ground, put a pair of strong arms caught her before she fell. Josie felt the gentle hands holding her lower back, the grip on her arm so oddly familiar. When she looked at who had caught her, she was greeted with hazel eyes and that infamous, annoying smirk. Josie moved from her frozen state in Penelope's arms, stepping back from the girl. "Sorry", she muttered half-heartedly. She turned to go, but Penelope's grip on her wrist stopped her. "We need to talk- soon.", Penelope told her. For a split second, Josie saw in Penelope the same spirit she had fallen in love with. That was until she jerked away, breaking the spell Penelope had over her. She hated the way just one glace from Penelope could make her so weak. So much for out of sight, out of mind.  
It seemed, to Josie, Penelope took up residence in her heart instead.


	18. Chapter 18: The Eavesdroppers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie can't concentrate, Josie and Lizzie find out a shocking secret that might tear their family apart, and Penelope makes an valiant effort with Josie.

THUMP  
Two weeks; Penelope Park had been on the swim team for two weeks.  
THUMP  
Josie had yet to speak to her, outside of small comments during practice.  
THUMP  
But that was her job, so that didn't count.  
THUMP  
She hated every minute of being on the same team as the raven-haired Park.  
THUMP  
She hated the stolen glances  
THUMP  
She hated the accidental touches  
THUMP  
And she especially hated the way her heart jumped into her throat every time those hazel eyes found hers  
THUMP  
THUMP  
THUMP  
"Will you please cut that out?", Josie snapped, glaring at Hope from the other side of the room. The girl held the rubber ball in her hand, pausing from throwing it against the wall. "Sorry", she muttered, throwing it up in the air instead. "You seemed pretty deep into your work, and I was bored." "Why don't you go see what Lizzie's doing?", Josie suggested, trying to bring her concentration back to her science book. Hope looked at her curiously. "Uh, she went to hang out with MG, remember? She came in to tell us before she left not even an hour ago." Josie tried to think back and remember what Hope said happened, but it only gave her a headache. She grabbed the water bottle from her desk, taking a drink. "I'm so tired I must have spaced.", she said, shaking her head. She closed her science book, setting it aside. It was useless to try and study when her body was rebelling against her so harshly. Hope rolled over onto her stomach, facing Josie head-on. "Is it Penelope related?", she asked, knowing the answer. Josie scoffed, waving the idea away. "No, it's not about her. I'm just loaded with work; Plus, my mom and dad have been fighting a lot recently. I don't know, I've just got a lot on my plate right now." 'Penelope just happens to be one of those things', she wanted to add but decided not to. Hope frowned. "Why don't you take a nap? I'll wake you up in an hour, and then we can tackle Mrs. Henley's "Packet of doom", Hope joked. Josie smiled; Hope had a point. If she took a small nap, she would be semi-rested enough to take on at least the assignments due the next day. She yawned loudly, giving Hope her answer. "See? You're exhausted.", she stated, patting the spot next to her on the bed. Josie gave in, crossing the room and crashing onto the mattress. "Promise you'll wake me up in an hour?", she muttered sleepily. Hope chuckled. "Of course, Jo. Just get some sleep- I'll be here when you wake up." Josie followed Hope's orders, falling asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.  
Josie awoke on her own, hours later. She jumped up out of bed, alerting Hope beside her. "Hope, you were supposed to wake me up!", she exclaimed, getting frantically out of bed. "I have so much to do- how am I supposed to get it all done? It's already 10 pm, I can't-" "Hey; Woah, Josie. Slow down.", Hope said, steadying the girl. "Your work is taken care of. Landon and I did it for you. Well, I did it while Landon helped me on the phone." Josie looked at her confused. "You did my homework? Hope, you don't even do your homework." "Well, that's why I called Landon.", Hope explained with a smile. "He double-checked all my answers. Hey, don't worry about it, okay? I saw how exhausted you were, and I wanted to take some stress off of you." Josie took a deep breath, calming her frantic, sleep-deprived brain. "Thank you, Hope. It means a lot." Hope just shrugged. "It's no big deal. Now, can we go back to sleep? You just disturbed a very good dream." Josie chuckled, tossing a pillow at Hope. "I don't want to hear about your sex dream with Landon." Hope gasped. "Josie! I am shocked you think such things of me.", she said in faux shock. "It was just a normal, PG-13 dream." Josie turned over with a groan. "Goodnight, Hope." She turned off the light by her bedside, drifting off to sleep before she could even hear Hope's reply.  
________________________________________________________  
"Josie?", a timid voice called out, followed by a gentle shake to Josie's shoulder. Josie tried to ignore it, but the voice only grew louder and more demanding. "Jo! Wake up!"Josie opened her eyes, rubbing the sleep from them. At the side of her bed was Lizzie, holding her finger up to her lips to tell Josie that she needed to be quiet. Josie silently got out of bed, careful not to disturb Hope. She followed Lizzie out into the hallway, hiding in the little nook in the wall by her parent's bedroom door. It was just big enough to fit in if she and Lizzie stayed close together, and it was close enough to the door that they could hear what was going on inside. Josie and Lizzie had used the space before to listen in, and their parents were aware of that. They were usually careful about what they said for that very reason, but at that moment it was almost as if they were too mad to care. They were arguing harshly- so loudly and crudely that it reverberated the wall around their door. "What the hell are they screaming about?", Lizzie whispered. Josie shushed her, pressing her ear against the wall. What she heard shocked her to her core.  
"Alaric, please.", her mother pleaded from inside the room. A large bang sounded, enough to make both girls jump. "How do you expect me to react, Caroline?", her father yelled. "I just found out that my wife- the woman I love- has been cheating on me! What, you expect me to be okay with that?" "Of course not! But I would hope you could at least be civil about this!", her mother yelled, her voice sounding tired and defeated. "Civil? This isn't a civil matter! You disrespected not only me- not only our marriage- but our daughters as well!" "I don't know what you want me to say, Alaric! I had a lapse in judgment, okay? It was one meaningless night three years ago. What we have- that's what I want." "I...I can't look at you right now, Caroline. I think it's best I stay at Damon and Elena's, at least for a few days." Caroline sighed heavily. "No, stay here with the girls. I'm going to stay at Hayley's. We were supposed to watch Hannah this week anyway." Josie could hear the closet door open, signaling the end of her parent's conversation. She ushered Lizzie back to her room, closing the door behind them. Josie relayed what she had heard to her sister, who looked just as freaked out as she was.  
"Mom cheated on dad?", she asked out loud, to nobody in particular. "I can't believe that! Mom would never cheat on dad! It doesn't make sense." Josie stayed silent; She was just as confused as Lizzie. Her mother and father were supposed to be in love- why would her mother jeopardize that? Why would she do something that would injure their family, possibly split it up for good? How was she supposed to look at her mother knowing what she had done? So much in Josie's life no longer made sense, and this was just the cherry on top of it all. She could feel her life slipping between her fingers, falling to her feet in a mess of broken, tangled pieces. What would happen next? She was unsure.  
But if this was the outcome of love, what was the point in any of it anyway?  
___________________________________________________________________  
Josie punched the bag in front of her harder, ignoring the tears that blurred her eyes. It had been a long time since she'd used a punching bag, but she was happy hope had suggested it. It was nice to feel pent up anger flow out of her, expelling it from her fist into the poor, beaten bag. It wasn't enough to make her feel completely better- Josie was pretty sure nothing could, at the moment. But it was enough that she no longer felt the need to hurt anybody around her. She leaned against the bag, catching her breath. It was surprising how winded she could get these days- she wasn't even hitting it that hard yet, and she felt dizzy. She leaned down and grabbed the water bottle off the ground. She unlocked her phone, reading the messages left for her there  
The Annoying Twin- 3:54 pm- Where are you? I need twin cuddles right now.  
Dad- 3:52 pm- Where are you, Josette? Your mother and I are worried.  
Mama Bear- 4:17 pm- I'll be at your aunt Hayley's with Hannah; Please listen to your father.  
Josie shut the phone off. She didn't want to deal with her family right now, even though she knew it was unfair to Lizzie. She was just as hurt by their mother as Josie was; They should be sticking together. Josie would eventually have to face them, but she was willing to put it off as long as she could. She could only take so much heartache in one day.  
Unfortunately for Josie, bad things come in threes.  
"Remind me not to piss you off, Saltzman", Penelope joked, walking up to the wound-up girl carefully. Josie swallowed hard, trying her best to look intimidating; It failed. "What do you want, Penelope", she muttered, cringing when she heard the emotion in her voice. It was not unnoticed by Penelope either. "Hey", she cooed, her voice softer. "Are you okay?" Josie didn't answer, but she could feel the first of many tears fall down her cheeks. How is it that she could never hide anything from Penelope, let alone her feelings? "Talk to me.", Penelope whispered, brushing the hair from Josie's face. "You can hate me all you want, Josie, and I won't blame you. But you need someone right now, and I'm here, okay? I'm right here. "She touched Josie's face gently, her expression sincere, her lip bitten nervously between her teeth. "Let me be here for you, Jojo." At her words, Josie cracked. All of the pressure building on her shoulders came flooding out, and as soon as she lost control of her emotions it was impossible to regain it. In the middle of the crowded gym, Penelope pulled Josie tightly into her. She ran a hand through her hair, letting the girl fall apart in her arms. She wanted to do more, but she didn't know exactly what Josie needed from her, what she wanted her to be for her; So she just held her.  
Penelope wished desperately that a hug was enough to put Josie's fragmented pieces back together.


	19. Chapter 19: The Locker Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ;)

"Josie?", a quiet voice called out, pulling Josie from the book she was reading. Josie looked up, smiling at the young girl in the doorway. At her door stood Hannah Mikaelson, Hope's little sister. She set the book aside, holding her arms open for the girl. "Hey, Munchkin", Josie greeted her warmly. "I thought you were supposed to be at home with my mom." "I don't like sitting in the house, especially when Hope isn't home." The young girl leaned forward, cupping her hands around Josie's ear. "She's with her boyfriend. But only you can know, and me. It's a secret, especially from my mom." Josie giggled, playing along with the girl's innocent oblivion. "Okay, I won't tell anyone.", she said. Hannah climbed up onto the bed. "What are you reading?", she asked, studying the front cover of the book. "Those are some big words." "It's called The Time Traveler's Wife.", Josie stated, handing the book to Hannah. "It's about a man who travels through time, and meets his wife at different times." Hannah scrunched her nose up at the book. "Sounds boring. It doesn't have any pictures; I like books with pictures. Besides, how many books can they make about a guy and a girl being married?" She handed the book back to Josie. "I'm never getting married. Boys are dumb." "Well, you don't have to get married to a boy, Kiddo.", Josie reminded her. Hannah rolled her eyes. "I know that. My aunt Freya and auntie Keenan are married, and their both girls." Hannah shrugged. "I don't know. Girls are mean, too. Well, except you, and Hope, and my best friend Lucy." She thought for a second. "I guess Lizzie is okay, too." "Well, you don't have to get married to anyone, if that's what you want. It is nice to have someone to spend time with, though." Hannah's brow furrowed, showing Josie just how much she resembled her big sister. "I can just spend time with you. Or Hope. Why do I need to get married to spend time with someone?" "Well, it's a special kind of relationship, Han.", Josie explained, her thoughts drifting. "It's someone you can wake up with, that you can talk about anything with. Someone who gets you, who cheers you up when you're sad. Someone you can't imagine living life without. It's the person you're meant to be with for the rest of your life."  
Hannah stared at her in awe; She had thought that all those things were fairytales, like the Disney movies her friends made her watch. "When you say it like that, it sounds cool.", she admitted, swinging her feet back and forth. "Do you think Hope feels that way about Landy?" Josie held back her laughter over the childish nickname, focusing on Hannah's question instead. "The only person who knows that is Hope, kiddo." Hannah crawled up farther on the bed, crawling into Josie's lap. "Do you think that anyone could ever love me like that, Jo?", she asked, a slight pout on her face. Josie ran her hands through the girl's hair. "Of course, Hannah.", Josie assured her. "You don't have to worry about that, okay? It's an adult thing." "You're an adult, right Josie? Do you love someone?" Josie swallowed hard; She didn't know what to say to Hannah's question, but for the sake of the innocent blue eyes so full of hope staring up at her, she knew she had to come up with something. She shrugged.  
"I don't know, but I think I'm close enough to know what it's supposed to feel like."  
______________________________________________________________________  
Josie wrung the water out of her hair, shivering as the cold air hit her skin. She had put in a good amount of effort during practice, and now that she had peeled off her wet suit, her sore muscles were itching for the feeling of sweat pants and a t-shirt. Normally she would change in the bathroom, but she was the only one left at the school anyway; Everyone else had already gone home, including her sister. Lizzie was much braver, facing the tension in the house. Josie, however, wanted to avoid the inevitable as long as possible. She slipped on her clothes and forced her sore legs into some sweatpants. She was about to go collect her things, when she noticed Penelope, frozen in place, by the locker room door. Her eyes widened, and she held the towel up to her chest, even though she was already fully dressed. "What the hell are you doing here? Have you been here the whole time?", she asked in frustration. Penelope cleared her throat, shaking away the less than appropriate thoughts clouding her mind. "I forgot my phone earlier- didn't realize until I got home. I'm sorry, I'll just grab it and go." Josie sighed heavily. "Just hurry up. I'm supposed to lock up soon."  
Penelope crossed to the other side of the room, opening the locker she had used earlier in the day and retrieving the device from inside. She closed the locker and turned around, shuffling awkwardly. She offered Josie a weak smile before walking toward the exit. Josie should have let her go- she should have. If you asked her later why she did it, she wouldn't know what to say. Maybe it was her talk with Hannah earlier, maybe it was the fact that everything around her was falling apart, maybe it was because she missed the feel of Penelope's arms on her skin. She didn't know why she grabbed Penelope's wrist, stopping the girl in her tracks. She didn't know why when Penelope, in confusion, asked her what she was doing, she responded with "I don't know." And she had no fucking clue why seconds later she pulled Penelope closer to her and pressed their lips together.  
Penelope hesitated, unsure of what was causing Josie to act so frantic. Nothing had changed between them- she was still the girl who lied to Josie, and Josie was still the girl who broke her heart. She should have pushed Josie away and left. She should have stopped to think about how messy her actions would make their situation; How blurry the lines were bleeding together between something and nothing. Penelope's mind, however, was blank. How could anyone expect her to form sentences, let alone think clearly when Josie was right in front of her? Her lips fit so perfectly against her own; her collarbone pressed into Penelope's palms, her heartbeat against Penelope's chest. Josie was no longer a figment of her dreams- she was materialized, a real-life dream come true. Penelope never thought she would ever have everything she wanted, but here she was cradling it in her hands. There was no way she was going to give that up, even if it only lasted for the moment. So, she closed her eyes, backed Josie against the locker for support.  
For that moment, she forgot that Josie hated her. She forgot that they were barely speaking, that she hadn't slept in days because of how badly it hurt not having her anymore. She just melted into the smell of Josie's perfume, tangled one hand into the girl's wet hair. She let herself feel because she already knew the moment was fleeting fast; she had no way of knowing if she'd have a chance like it again. So, she gave in, losing herself in Josie's touch.  
She had gotten a small taste of what it felt like to love Josie, and she was already completely hooked.


	20. Chapter 20: The Inevitable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Penelope and Josie finally speak just as everything else starts to fall apart.

Penelope- 1:17 pm- Josie?  
Penelope- 2:20 pm- We need to talk.  
Penelope- 2:45 pm- C'mon, Jojo. You know I'm right.  
Penelope- 2:47pm- Please?  
Josie- 3:43pm- Fine. I'll meet you at the school in 20 minutes.  
Josie- 3:49 pm- JUST talking, Penelope.  
Penelope- 3:50pm- Noted. C u soon.  
Josie took a deep breath, finishing getting ready to go out. She shrugged on a jacket and put her hair up. She wasn't sure what was going to come out of their conversation, but she couldn't deny that part of her was dying to see Penelope again. All of the past week her mind had been stuck replaying their hook up in the locker room. She shivered at the mere thought. She had no idea what had gotten into her lately; Normally she had more self control than this. Something about Penelope, however, made all of her morals fly out the window. She was still wary of the girl, but if Josie was being honest, anything was better than being at home. Her mother hadn't returned from her stay at the Mikaelson house. According to Hope, she had no plans to either. Hayley had returned a few days ago from her business trip, and Josie had assumed her mother would come home, But she was wrong. Her father didn't seem to mind his wife's absence either- it worried Josie deeply, and she constantly felt sick with anxiety that something was building up ever so slowly, threatening to rip her family apart.  
"Hey, dork.", Lizzie greeted, leaning in her sister's doorway. She raised an eyebrow at her sister's ensemble. "Where are you planning on going?", she asked, arms folded across her chest. Josie swallowed hard, turning away from her sister so she couldn't read her features. "I'm just hanging out with Hope. She asked me to come over." Lizzie mulled over her sister's words, and for a second Josie was worried she was busted. Instead, Lizzie just shrugged. "Well, don't be out too late. Supposedly, mom is coming over tonight to dinner. I think they're finally figuring their shit out." Josie sighed with relief, both for the fact that her sister believed her lie flawlessly, and that it was looking like her parents were ending their feud. "Alright; I'll be back by six.", she said, departing from her sister and heading out into the early winter air.  
The drive to where Penelope was waiting for her was short- too short, in Josie's opinion. She tried to plan out their conversation in her head, figuring out what she wanted to say to Penelope before she ended up being a wordless, unnerved mess. She was so anxious that she could feel her hands slipping on the steering wheel. She pulled into the school parking lot, taking deep breaths to steady herself. What was so scary about talking to Penelope? She had done it a thousand times before. Yet, something in Josie knew that this conversation would be different. In a good or bad way, she had yet to decide.  
A knocking sounded at her window, and Josie looked up to see Penelope standing by the car door. She unlocked the safety lock, and Penelope entered the car, bringing in with her the cold winter air. Penelope looked over at Josie shyly. "Hey", she greeted her, leaning back against the car door. "Hey", Josie mumbled, looking anywhere but at the girl. If she looked at her, she wouldn't be able to keep acting like she was pissed at her. Penelope sighed heavily. "I was surprised when you agreed to meet me.", she stated, trying to break the tension in the car. She chuckled to herself. "For the past month, I've been going over what I wanted to say to you. What I could say to make everything turn back to the way it used to be- before you knew who I was. When I was just a voice through a screen. But that's silly, isn't it? We can never go back to where things were before I so royally screwed up." Penelope swallowed hard, her eyes squeezing shut to stop the tears threatening to escape. "I came up with this great speech- practiced it over and over again on the nights I couldn't sleep. But now I don't remember a single word; You make me speechless, Josette. All I can think of to say is how badly I missed you, how much it hurt me to see how pained you were that day at the meet. How much I hated myself for screwing up what we had, and for building it on lies in the first place." Penelope's hands shook as she spoke, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I should have told you. I-I should have been honest." Josie reached forward and grabbed hold of Penelope's hand. "Why didn't you tell me?", she asked, though she already knew the answer. Penelope sighed. "I didn't think you'd want me anymore when you knew who I was. Every time I almost said something, I didn't because I was terrified of losing you completely. I know I lied about who I was, but everything else was real, Jojo." Josie rubbed her thumb over the back of Penelope's hand, not being able to do much more in the cramped space. "The more I knew you, the more in love I fell.", Penelope admitted. "I still do; I love you as I've never loved anything in my life." She glanced up at Josie through teary eyes. "I know you probably don't feel the same anymore. I know you feel like you can't trust me anymore. I have no right to ask for another chance, but I swear to god Josie if you allow me one I will never lie to you again. I promise to make up for all my mistakes- for the rest of my life if I had to." She touched Josie's cheek gently. "Please, Josie. Let me show you how real this is to me."  
Josie leaned forward, her anger withering away as she met Penelope in the middle. She could taste the salt from Penelope's tears, but she didn't care. She was tired of fighting with Penelope, but more importantly, she was tired of fighting with herself. She pulled away, wiping away Penelope's tears with the pad of her thumb. She touched her forehead to Penelope's, holding both her hands in her own. "I forgive you.", she whispered to her. "You made a mistake. I forgive you, and I love you - all sides of you. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize that." Penelope breathed a sigh of relief. "No more secrets, okay?", Josie said, and Penelope nodded against her. "I want this to work, but only if we're both honest." "No more secrets.", Penelope agreed, smiling softly. "Thank you." Josie placed a kiss to Penelope's forehead. "Do you think we can ever go back to what we had again?", Penelope asked timidly, her face falling when Josie shook her head no. Her worry fell away, however, when Josie pushed her hair behind her ear and kissed her once again.  
"We might not ever be the way we used to be, but maybe we'll be something better."  
___________________________________________________________  
Josie returned home hours later, a smile still on her face. She felt lighter than she had in months. Everything was falling into place, and now she had Penelope. She felt like nothing could hurt her; like nothing could ruin the happiness she felt. That feeling soon dissipated, however, when she saw her family sitting together in the living room, her sister's face red and blotchy from crying. She entered timidly. "What the hell is going on?", she asked angrily, coming to Lizzie's side. Her mother sighed heavily. "Come sit down, Josette. Your father and I need to talk to you." Josie looked from her tired mother to her angry father, then to her sullen sister. She did as her mother asked. Her parents were quiet for a long moment before her mother spoke. "Your father and I have decided it's best for everyone that I don't live here anymore." Josie stared at her parents in confusion- her mother's words made no sense, her brain not catching up with the reality of the situation. "What do you mean you're not living here anymore? We're a family. I don't understand." Her father broke his silence, her words making Josie's heart drop.  
"Your mother and I are getting a divorce."


	21. Chapter 21: The Boiling Point

"What do you mean you're getting divorced?!", Josie shouted, springing up from her seat. "You can't be serious! We're a family!" Her mother stood up, reaching out to her. "Josie, please can we talk about this? I know it's a change, but it's really for the best." Josie shook her head. "Unbelievable- how could you do this to us mom?", Josie yelled at her angrily. "Yes, I know what you did. Lizzie and I overhead you and dad talking." Her mother looked down in embarrassment. "You did this to us!", she accused her, her fists clenched in rage. "What, were we not enough for you? Or did you just not care about how your actions affect us?" "Josette!", her father boomed, his eyes alive with rage. "You do not speak to your mother like that. She is still your mother, and you will treat her as much." Josie laughed, but there was no emotion in it. She turned around and walked out of the room. "Josette Parker Saltzman, get back here!", her mother called after her. Josie ignored her, retreating to her room and slamming the door shut. Downstairs, she could hear her parents and sister arguing, but she tuned the sound of it out as best she could. She didn't care what her parents were feeling; Not when they so obviously didn't care about hers. After a while, the arguing calmed down. She heard the front door slam, and her mother's car starting up in the driveway. She saw the shadow of the headlights on her wall as she drove away.  
At her bedroom door, a knock sounded. Josie ignored it, thinking it was her father coming to yell at her some more. Instead, the door creaked open, and Lizzie entered the room, her eyes red and her features tired. She climbed into bed beside Josie, wrapping her arms around her sister's torso. "I didn't think they would go this far.", she whispered, and Josie instinctively held Lizzie closer. "They're serious about getting a divorce, Jo. I saw the papers on the table, and all of mom's stuff is gone." Josie sighed, resting her chin on her sister's head. "Everything will be okay", she reassured her, not knowing if what she was saying was true. Josie wasn't sure of anything anymore. "Maybe they just need some more time.", she said, rubbing her sister's back soothingly. "If this is real, though, you still have me. You'll always have me."  
____________________________________________________________________  
Hope- 7:34am- Josie  
Hope- 7:35 am- Josie, I fucked up. Badly.  
Hope- 7:36 am- I need you to come to get me. And don't tell your sister.  
Hope- 7:36 am- Don't tell anyone.  
Josie- 7:45 am- Hope, what's going on?  
Josie- 7:54 am- You're scaring me  
Josie- 8:01 am- Okay, I'm on my way.  
Josie approached Hope's house, ringing the doorbell. Hayley's car was out of the driveway; She had already taken Hannah to school, the place Josie should be. She would have to come up with a good excuse later about why she was absent, but she wasn't concerned about that now. Right now was about Hope. The girl in question barely opened the door before she pulled Josie inside, burying her head into the girl's chest. Hope's whole body was shaking, but no sound left the girl's body. Josie took a minute to process the situation, before pulling away from Hope to look her in the face. Pure fear- that was the only thing Josie saw in Hope's eyes. She had never seen Hope so terrified before; She was normally the collected one, calming Josie down. This time, the roles were reversed. "Hey, hey, hey", she muttered, tilting Hope's head up to look her in the eyes. "I'm here, Hope. What's going on? Are you okay?" Hope didn't dare to move or even speak. It was as if she was in shock. Josie led her to the couch, making her sit down. "Stay here. I'm going to get you some water." Hope gave the smallest of nods, putting her head in her hands. Josie ran to the kitchen to get a bottle of water, opening it before handing it to Hope. The latter girl just held it in her hands. "Talk to me, Hope", Josie pleaded. "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong." Hope took a shaky deep breath. "You can't tell anyone.", she managed to say through her shaking. "I mean it Josie- no one can know." "I won't okay? You know I won't.", Josie assured her, holding onto her arms to steady her. "Whatever it is, we can handle it okay?" Hope shook her head, bursting into a fresh round of tears. Josie was at a loss of what to do, so she grabbed a paper lying on the coffee table and handed it to Hope. "If you can't say it, can you write it?", she asked. Hope took a deep breath and nodded. She took the paper and a pen, scribbling on it before handing it back to Josie. She curled her knees up to her chest, not looking at Josie's reaction. Josie looked down at the paper, her eyes widening. On it was something she never thought she'd hear from Hope.  
I think I'm pregnant.  
__________________________________________________________  
"You can keep looking at the clock, but it's not going to make time go by faster, Hope.", Josie reminded her, watching as her best friend paced around the room. Hope, lost in her thoughts, ignored her. "How long did it say on the package?", she asked absentmindedly, keeping her thoughts trained in her footsteps. If she focused on anything else, she would break down again, and that wouldn't be good for a baby. God, was she talking about her potential baby? Josie read the back of the package. "Two minutes. Only one minute and 20 seconds left." Hope took a deep breath. She prayed that she was wrong- that the four pregnancy tests sitting on her bathroom countertop would all come up negative. Then, everything could go back to normal. She closed her eyes  
Back, Forth. Back, Forth. Back, Forth.  
The timer on Josie's phone rang, stealing the air right from Hope's lungs. She dropped down onto the bed, her focus on the bathroom door. Josie glanced at her. "C'mon, Hope.", she urged her. "I know it's scary, but you have to know." Hope shook her head. "I can't- I just can't." Josie squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "Hey, it's okay. I'll go look.", she stated, and Hope nodded in agreement. "I'll be right back." Josie disappeared into the bathroom. After what felt like hours to Hope, she came back into the room. The look on Josie's face said it all, confirming Hope's worse fears. She cried into the palm of her hands. The test was positive; Hope was pregnant.


	22. Chapter 22: The Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Penelope takes Josie on their first official date :)

"I can go with you if you want to talk to someone, Hope.", Josie suggested, but Hope refused, swallowing hard at the implication. She had dreaded that Josie would bring up her "situation", and she looked over her shoulder in a paranoid fashion to make sure no one else in the classroom had heard them. She couldn't risk anyone at Salvatore finding out; She wasn't ready for what that would entail. "There's nothing to talk about, okay? I still have time to decide. I just want to have some kind of plan before anyone else knows." Josie, of course, knew that Hope was just avoiding the reality of her situation. She was procrastinating, dealing with her situation like Josie would with her chemistry homework. She wanted to urge Hope to talk to someone- anyone with the power to help her in the ways that Josie was not equipped to- but she knew Hope too well; Pushing her to do anything only ended badly. So, she let the idea go- at least, for the moment. "If you change your mind, you know where to find me." Hope nodded her head, but Josie could tell that either she hadn't heard a word that she said, or she was simply blocking it out. Josie knew Hope had checked out of the conversation the moment it started. She sighed heavily, keeping one eye on the teacher at the front of the room while she sneakily read her incoming texts.  
Penny- 1:34 pm- We're still on for tonight, right?  
Josie- 1:36 pm- Of course we are :) I'm looking forward to it <3  
Josie- 1:38 pm- Are you going to tell me yet where we're going?  
Penny- 1:44 pm- Of course not; It's a surprise ;)  
Josie- 1:47 pm- Haven't we had enough surprises, Pen? Come on, I'm dying to know.  
Penny- 1:52 pm- This is a good surprise, so I'm okay with keeping it secret for a little while longer  
Penny- 1:53pm- Patience, baby. Only 5 more hours and then I'm yours  
Josie- 2:01pm- Meanie.  
Penny- 2:02 pm- I love you, Jojo :)  
Josie- 2:03 pm- Yeah, yeah. I love you too, Pen <3  
"She's still not telling you where she's taking you?", Hope asked, and Josie shook her head, leaning her head on her hand. "It's driving me crazy. We haven't had any time together in a week. Her parents and her sister were home at the same time for once. So she was, in her own words, 'Stuck with the Brady bunch.'" Josie glanced up at the teacher to make sure she was still distracted. "She sounded so tired on the phone, too. She doesn't have the best relationship with them; I think they wear her out." "I get that; Hannah's been driving me insane. She's been so clingy." Hope rolled her eyes at her sister's expense. "She's going through this phase where she always wants to be around me, do the things that I do- it's suffocating." "At least your sister talks to you.", Josie mumbled. "Lizzie's been like a ghost ever since I told her that Penelope and I are working things out. Her door is always closed, she's always on the phone. At first, I thought it was with you, so I didn't think much of it. Now I'm curious; If I didn't know better, I'd say she has a boyfriend." Hope shrugged. "Who knows. You know Lizzie- she'll tell us when she's ready, or she won't say anything at all. All we can do is play the waiting game." "I just wish she'd talk to me, you know? We used to tell each other everything." Hope gave Josie an undefined look, confusing Josie. "What?", she asked, and Hope just shook her head. "Nothing; I just don't get you sometimes." Josie stared at the girl in confusion, urging Hope to continue. "You said Liz was suffocating you, right? Well, this is her backing off, Jo. She's doing her own thing, just like you are." Hope picked up a pen, making tiny doodles on the edge of Josie's paper. "This is what independence feels like, Jo. It's not that she's ignoring you; She's giving you what you asked for." Josie mulled on Hope's words. She hadn't thought of it that way. After almost seventeen years of being attached at the hip with Lizzie, to have independence felt wrong. Josie uncapped her pen, adding stems and leaves to the flowers Hope was drawing. "I just miss the closeness, I guess. It feels like this huge part of me is missing." Hope squeezed Josie's hand in comfort. "Give her some time, Jo.", she assured her. "Remember- Lizzie's still learning how to live her own life, too."  
___________________________________________________________________  
Josie looked up from her phone, a smile spreading across her face when she saw Penelope's car pull up to the curb. She closed the front door, twisting the key in the lock before walking down to the edge of the street and climbing into the passenger side. She leaned over to give Penelope a swift kiss, immersing herself in the haze of coconut and vanilla that she had missed for so long. Penelope pulled away first, touching her forehead to Josie's as she laced their hands together. "God, I missed you so much.", she admitted, her smile mirroring the sparkle in her eyes. It was an unexpected feeling for Josie, one that made warmth spread throughout her body- the feeling of being missed by someone as much as she had missed them. Penelope started up the car once again, her non-dominant hand still intertwined with Josie's, as if she didn't want to let her go. "Are you going to tell me where we're going yet?", Josie asked, but Penelope just shook her head no. "You'll find out soon, I promise. We're about twenty minutes away. Josie sighed heavily, feigning a pout. Penelope squeezed her hand, chuckling softly. "I never thought of you as the impatient type, Jojo.", she joked, causing Josie to crack just the hint of a smile despite her annoyance. "Just a little while longer, Jo. Trust me, it'll be worth it."  
Josie recognized where they were before Penelope had even pulled into the driveway. Her annoyance turned to excitement. "You brought me to the aquarium?", Josie asked in disbelief, and Penelope nodded, biting her lip as if nervous of Josie's reaction. Josie squealed in Joy, hugging Penelope across the console. "Oh my god, I love the aquarium! How did you know?", she exclaimed. Penelope shrugged shyly, sighing in relief. "I might have mentioned to your sister that I wanted to take you somewhere special for our first official date.", she admitted, exiting the car and joining Josie on the other side of it. "She told me that this is one of your favorite places." Josie placed a kiss on Penelope's cheek, the smile never leaving her face. "This is perfect, Penelope. My favorite place with my favorite girl." Penelope's cheeks flushed a deep pink, which wasn't left unnoticed by Josie. She loved having the power to turn big, badass Penelope Park into a love-struck mess. She intertwined their hands together, tugging her forward. "Come on- I'll show you my favorite part of this place."  
_____________________________________________________________________  
"Wow", Penelope exclaimed in awe, sitting on the bench next to Josie. Opposite them was a large tank housing hundreds of tiny, colorful fish. Their motion reflected on the light, bathing the viewing area in a subtle glow. Penelope understood why this particular attraction was Josie's favorite- the schools of fish swam around freely, their scales glimmering in the water. The scene was serene, the experience made even more special by the fact that they were the only two around so late at night. Once again, Penelope was grateful she had found an aquarium that allowed night time visits. "Their called Discus fish.", Josie explained. "I think these are the tropical kind, because of all their colors." "They're beautiful, Jojo.", Penelope commented with sincerity. She wrapped her arm around Josie's shoulder, and Josie leaned her head on Penelope's shoulder in response. "This place has a lot of cool fish, but these have always been my favorite. They're just so peaceful, and their colors are so vibrant. When I was younger, Lizzie used to complain because I'd beg my mom and dad to stay at this exhibit when she wanted to see all the other ones. My mom usually ended up taking her around to the other exhibits while my dad and I watched them all day." She chuckled to herself at the memory, her heart pained at the thought that the days where her whole family was together had ended. "I used to want to be a fish. At least, until I started swimming lessons." "So that's what sparked your love for our sport? Aquarium fish?", Penelope teased. Josie rolled her eyes. "Hey, I was a little kid back then.", she defended, shaking her head. "What made you want to be a swimmer?", she asked. The question momentarily stunned Penelope; She had no answer to give her. "I guess it was never a matter of wanting to swim.", she admitted. "It was more of an obligation. I guess that's what happens when both your parents are Olympic medalists. Everyone expects you to follow their legacy." Josie was quiet for a moment before turning to face Penelope. "So then what's your passion?", she inquired, earning a confused look from Penelope. "My passion?", she reiterated, unsure she had heard Josie correctly. "Yeah; I mean, if all of the expectations, and the competitions, and your parents' judgment was gone, what would you be happy spending the rest of your life doing?" This time, Penelope didn't have to think twice about her answer. "A dancer.", she blurted out, shocking even herself by saying so out loud. "I mean, I've always loved music, and dancing always seemed so interesting to me. But, It's too late for me. Most people start when they're young." Josie stopped Penelope's ramblings with a kiss, holding her face gently in her hands. When she pulled away, she looked hopeful. "Stop doubting yourself, baby.", Josie said, rubbing her thumb against Penelope's jaw. "If you want to dance, we'll make it happen. You don't have to live by someone else's dreams, Penny. It's time you live your own." Tears welled up in Penelope's eyes. She buried her face in Josie's neck, wrapping her arms around her back. She felt hopeful. Only with Josie did she feel like she could be truly herself; Not what her sister, her parents, or her teammates wanted her to be. Not Penelope Park, the legacy. Just Penelope.  
She liked feeling like herself again almost as much as she liked the feeling of Josie's hand in hers.


	23. Chapter 23: The Big Decision

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions run high between Hope and Josie about her "situation", Penelope and Josie try (and fail) to actually study, and Hope makes a startling discovery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's back, back again. I'm back, tell a friend.  
> No, seriously, I'm sorry for being gone so long. A lot has been going on in my personal life, and writing fell to the back burner for a while. I appreciate all the love and concern I've gotten while I was gone, and I especially appreciate the continued support for this story. While I know some people weren't happy with the…let's say, chaotic turn this story has taken, I am relieved to know the majority of everyone has enjoyed it. This story is my escape from my own chaotic life, and I'm happy to continue with it. Who knew a stupid one shot written during my chemistry class last year would turn into a 23 chapter (and still going) story? Well, as always, enjoy the chapter. It's a long one. It feels really good to be back :)

The second-floor bathroom had quickly become a Haven for Hope. Every morning, almost like clockwork, Hope rushed down the hall from her Geometry class and sunk to her knees in front of the toilet bowl, letting go of her breakfast as morning sickness wracked her body. Her throat burned badly, and her eyes welled up with tears as she gripped the wall tightly. This new daily routine was driving her mad; She had barely eaten in weeks in fear that it would just come back up. Her mother had started to question why Hope never joined them for dinner anymore, but luckily she was too wrapped up in work to be too intrusive. For once, Hope was grateful for how demanding her mother's job was. She didn't want to have to explain to Hayley that the mere smell of food made her want to throw up. She leaned against the stall, breathing out shakily. She was hungry and tired, and her body felt foreign to her. Hope, she decided, was already so done with pregnancy. How her mom had done this twice she had no idea. She made a mental note to thank her when all of this was over with.

Hope sighed with relief when the outside door opened and Josie walked in. She unlocked the stall door, doing her best to ignore the look of pity on her best friend's face. She gladly took the antacid and piece of gum Josie fished out of her purse before getting up from her position on the ground. She flicked the handle with her shoe before approaching the sink and applying her lipgloss. She avoided looking down at her stomach, knowing that the slightest of bumps had already started to form at her waist. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Josie watching her, her arms crossed and her lip bit between her teeth. She looked as if she wanted to say something, but kept her thoughts to herself. Hope was grateful for that. Josie was a godsend to Hope lately, and she knew her friend was worried about her. Josie had always been someone who liked to solve problems, but Hope was in a problem with no clear solution. Hope had to make this decision on her own, and she was terrified of the moment she would have to face her consequences. Still, she was barely in her first trimester, and she planned on staying in denial for as long as she could.

"Are you and Penelope planning on going to Raf's party tonight?", Hope spoke up abruptly, not bothering to wait for an answer. "Landon and I are, and I'm pretty sure MG is taking your sister." "Is there going to be alcohol there?", Josie asked wearily, and Hope shrugged. "I mean, I'm sure the guys got a keg or something. It's a Rafael party, after all." "And are you going to be drinking, Hope?", Josie asked, her fears confirmed when Hope couldn't look her in the eyes. "Hope, no.", Josie objected, no longer able to keep quiet. "You can't keep acting as if this isn’t happening. As if-" "As if what, Josette?", Hope snapped, turning to glare at her friend. "God, get off my back, okay? So what if I want to have a little fun before my life ends? It's my decision, not yours!" Josie's jaw dropped open in surprise. "Are you even listening to yourself right now? How can you be so careless? You're carrying a baby, Hope- and it's depending on you to keep it safe! You're going to be its mom!" "But I don't want to be!", Hope shouted back, her bottom lip trembling. She paused for a moment, before erasing the emotion was showing on her face. She shook her head in disbelief. "You don't understand.", she mumbled, picking her things up from the ground. "I'll talk to you later." With that, she left out the door, leaving Josie alone with her concern.

Josie sighed, pounding her fist on the sink. She felt powerless. She couldn't help Hope unless she wanted to help herself, and it seemed like getting help was the least of Hope's concerns. She felt like a bad friend; if something happened to Hope or her baby, it would fall on her shoulders. She wanted to say something, but she was the one person Hope had trusted with such sensitive information. She had made a promise to Hope that she would keep her secret safe, and Josie was not one to break promises. So, she would continue to be there for Hope in whatever way she needed her to be. Even though it was stressing Josie out more than it was stressing Hope. Her stomach growled at her, and she grimaced at the tight feeling of emptiness. She could hardly remember the last time she'd had a decent meal, but it wasn't of her most concern at the moment. She had bigger problems than an empty stomach. She flipped open the top of her water bottle, draining it and refilling it until she felt full again. She took a deep breath, fixing the collar of her shirt in the bathroom mirror. She looked fine, even if she felt like crap. If she concentrated, she could even see the very faint definition of her collar bone against her skin. She smiled to herself. Her long workouts at the gym were finally paying off, so at least she had one thing to be proud of. She made a mental note to visit again later that week, maybe even after her study date with Penelope. Anything to keep her from going back home. She couldn't bear to see the space on the mantlepiece in the living room where her parent's wedding picture used to be or to hear her parents argue back and forth over the phone anymore. She had made a point of it to avoid home as much as possible, which worked out perfectly since her father was too annoyed at her mother to notice.

Josie looked down at the time on her phone, silently cursing to herself. She was late- really late- and her art teacher was liable to kill her for missing his class. She refilled the water bottle and capped in closed, shoving it into the bottom of her bag. If she hurried now, maybe she'd be able to convince Mr. Gomez to give her adment long enough to make up her missing work.  
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"Babe, I'm going to say this in the nicest way possible, but you look like hell.", Penelope stated, watching as Josie dozed off next for the sixth time in the twenty minutes they had been studying. Josie perked up slightly, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "I'm sorry. I haven't been getting much sleep lately.", she admitted. Penelope nodded her understanding. "is it still World War 3 at home?", she asked, running her hand through Josie's hair as she leaned against her. Josie nodded sleepily. "Dad has been holed up in his study for weeks now, except when Lizzie brings him food. She's been trying to take care of him, y'know? I think he's depressed over my mom leaving." Penelope frowned; She felt bad for the twins. She knew that kind of family tension pretty well by now. She was sure that if they weren't constantly traveling across different continents 90 percent of the time, she'd be in the same situation. "It's all going to be okay, Jojo.", she reassured her, lacing their fingers together. "And if you ever need a place to stay, you can always stay with me. Better than being in an empty house." Josie nodded, smiling up at her girlfriend. "Are you just saying that to get me back in your bed again?", she joked, causing Penelope to roll her eyes. "Well, is it working?", she retorted, causing Josie to laugh and give her a chaste kiss. Amidst all the drama and chaos going on in her life, Josie was beyond grateful that she had Penelope to even her universe out.

It was as if they were in the same orbit.

"Have you looked into those dancing classes I sent you?", Josie inquired, and Penelope nodded. "I did, but I don't know Josie. I'm not trained, like at all. I've never even danced, like, in front of people." She paused for a moment. "Well, not that kind of dancing." Josie shoved her playfully at that comment. "I'm serious though, Josie.", Penelope admitted. "I don't want to go to one of those places and make a complete fool out of myself." "So what if you do, Penny? You're not going to be great at it right away, but that's what these classes are for.", She reminded her. "They're beginner classes; No one in there will know what they're doing. But they're for fun, and you deserve to have some fun every once and a while. This isn't something you have to be perfect at, Penelope. You just have to be you." Josie squeezed her hand tightly. "I know that is a lot to ask from you because you're a perfectionist- I am too. But, at least try it? I'll even go with you if you want." Josie giggled. "We'll make fools out of ourselves together." Penelope thought it over for a moment. Maybe Josie was right. There was no harm in trying something new, right? And even if she was terrible at it…well, she knew Josie would still be there cheering her on. She caved, nodding her head. "Yeah, okay. I'll call the place later today and check it out." Josie smiled, happy she was able to encourage Penelope the way she always did for her. And Penelope, well, she was just happy to see Josie smile for the first time in weeks. She knew a lot of bullshit was going on, and she knew they were powerless for what the future would bring, but as long as Josie was on her side, she knew they would get through anything life could throw their way. She looked over and saw that Josie had dozed off yet again, her head resting on Penelope's shoulder. Instead of waking her, Penelope shook her head at her girlfriend and uncapped her pen, tackling her homework as Josie's soft snores vibrated against her shirt.  
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Hope- 11:28 pm- Josie, please open your door. I'm outside.  
Hope- 11:29 pm- I'd rather not cry where all of your neighbors can hear me, Jo.  
Josie- 11:31 pm- Stay there; I'm coming.  
Josie- 11:32 pm- Please don't climb up the side of my house again.

Josie cracked open the door, taken aback by the state Hope was in. Her mascara ran down her cheeks, making two black trails down the sides of her face. She was hunched over, small sobs coming from her shivering body. Josie opened the door wider, allowing Hope to come in and collapse against her. The two of them made it to Josie's room, where Hope finally allowed herself to melt in Josie's arms. Josie held her friend until Hope's sobs quieted to small gasps, and then endured the silence of the room until Hope was able to speak again. "I went to Landon's", she admitted, her voice too hoarse to manage more than a whisper. "I was going to tell him about the baby, Josie. I was. I went up to the door, and I knocked. But, uh, he didn't answer the door." Josie closed her eyes, swallowing hard; She knew where this was going. "It was some blonde cheerleader from school, and she was wearing one of his t-shirts. When I asked if he was there, she called him 'babe', Josie. He…he cheated on her with me." Hope put her head in her hands, laughing scornfully at herself. "I was just a hookup to him. And worse, I'm the girl who got knocked up while he was cheating on his actual girlfriend. How fucking dumb is that?" "Hey, no.", Josie said, grabbing hold of her hand. "You didn't know, Hope. You had no way of knowing what a scumbag he was being, okay? He chose to cheat on her; That's not your fault." "What does it matter Josie? I'm still pregnant with his baby. I…I don't know what to do. I can't- I just-" Hope sighed, shaking her head. "I can't do this. I can't be a mom. And he can't know." Hope looked at Josie with sullen eyes. "I…I need your help. I can't do this alone. I-I'm scared." "I'm here, Hope.", Josie assured her. "Whatever you need, I'm here." Hope nodded, her heartrate finally starting to calm down. Her shoulders drooped, exhaustion taking hold of her. "Will you…Can you just hold me?", Hope asked, feeling embarrassed at the request. Josie didn't say a word. Instead, she climbed under the covers, patting the spot next to her for Hope to join her. Hope did, and after a few minutes of shuffling, both girls were cuddled together, Josie's arms around Hope's torso. Exhausted, both girls quickly succumbed to sleep, finding safety in each other's embrace.


	24. Chapter 24: The Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Twin drama, dance class, and a *bit* of fluffy posie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A tiny warning. I am pro-choice, and this chapter has implications that some will not approve of. I want to make it very clear that any nasty comments concerning this story line will be deleted. If you'd like to discuss your views in the comments, even if they are different than mine, please do so respectfully. Thank you :)

Josie- 7:34 am- Hey, Hope. How are you feeling?  
Josie- 7:49 am- Are you coming back to school today?  
Josie- 8:23 am- Hope, I know that you're hurting. Do you want me to come over later? I can cancel with Penelope.   
Josie- 8:50 am- Just let me know if you need anything.  
Josie- 8:51 am- Everything will be okay, Hope.  
Josie- 8:51 am- I love you.

Josie sighed, putting her phone back in her purse. It had been a week since they had visited the clinic, 6 days since Hope began taking the pills. The doctor had warned Hope that she would feel sick for a few days after she took them, so Hope had been absent in the last few days. But, in that time, Hope had gone silent. She wasn't returning Josie's calls or texts, and when she went by to visit her, no one answered the door. It was if Hope had shut the world out, and Josie wasn't an exception to that. It pained her that after everything Hope wouldn't come to her, but she understood. She didn't even know how she would feel being in Hope's position, especially when they were so young. She just wished her best friend didn't feel like she had to go through this alone. As Josie rounded the corner, she ran into Landon, who had his arm around a blonde girl in a cheerleading uniform. Josie recognized that this must be the girlfriend that Hope had told her about. Landon's eyes met hers, and she knew he could see how pissed she was at him. She bit her lip roughly to keep from speaking out, pushing past the couple to get to where she needed to go. She could hear the girl mumble something to Landon behind her, but she ignored it as she continued down the hallway. She understood now why Hope wanted to keep everything a secret. The girl was clueless, the starstruck look in her eyes when she looked at Landon making Josie feel sorry for the girl. She was helplessly in love with the guy who had cheated on her. The whole sad situation made Josie's stomach hurt. That, or it was the fact that she hadn't eaten breakfast that morning.

Josie sat down in the seat next to her sister, giving her a slight nod before taking out her materials for class. Lizzie barely acknowledged her. Josie sighed; Lizzie had been distant for weeks, ever since her mother moved out. She was constantly with their father, refusing to speak to their mother. Josie, on the other hand, avoided speaking to her parents entirely. She knew what side Lizzie had picked, but Josie didn't want to have to choose between her parents. She still had the hope that things would work themselves out eventually. Maybe her parents just needed space to work things out. It wasn't as if they hadn't had big fights before. No, they had to make up some time, right? They were married, and they loved each other. Josie had to have faith in that. After all, love always triumphed in the end. Josie snapped out of her thoughts when a pointed nail tapped her on the shoulder. Josie turned to her sister, her eyebrow raised slightly. "Dad wants us to come home right after practice.", Lizzie explained to her, never taking her eyes off the worksheet in front of her. "He says he feels bad that we haven't spent time together since…well, you know." "I can't; Penelope and I have plans later.", she stated, causing Lizzie to roll her eyes. "Right", she scoffed. "Of course you would pick her over me and dad. Her and Hope are the only two people you've cared about lately. You're barely even home anymore Josie. I-" Lizzie's rant was cut short by the presence of their Spanish teacher looming over her, looking down in disapproval at the twins. "Ms. Saltzman, I'd advise you to keep family matters at the door. When you enter my room, it is a time for learning.", he scolded them. "You may both exit my classroom until your matters are sorted." Josie stood to object, but he simply pointed at the door silently. As her classmates snickered behind her, Josie grabbed her things and followed Lizzie out the door.

"Great, Lizzie.", Josie muttered, closing the door behind her with more force than she probably should have. "You know I'm failing that class! You couldn't wait to make a scene somewhere else?" "Well, I would talk to you at home but you're never there! Seriously, Josie, you've become a ghost. You're out early in the morning before we wake up, and you don't come home until dad is already in bed. What, do you think you can just avoid us forever?" Lizzie stopped In her tracks, glaring at her sister. "You've been seeing mom, haven't you. Is that why you're never home? You'd rather be with…her…than us, even though she's the one that split our family apart?!" "God, Lizzie, no!", Josie yelled, losing her temper. "I'm not picking sides, okay? I don't want to pick sides. That's why I'm not at home." The other students began filling the hallways, cutting their conversation short. "I'm done fighting with you about this. I can't be late for class. I'll see you at practice." Lizzie threw her hands up, almost to say "I give up", before storming down the hallway. Josie watched her leave, a sour taste left in her mouth. She hated fighting with Lizzie, but it seemed that it was the only thing that they could do lately. Josie walked to the water fountain, drinking from it until the empty pit in her stomach went away. When she felt a little better, she headed to her class, ignoring the nagging thought that maybe Lizzie had some truth to her accusations.  
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Josie had been unaware of just how exhausting dancing could be. While she was dying halfway through the class from heat alone, Penelope seemed completely unbothered. She looked at peace, completely in her element. The teacher, of course, took interest in her immediately. While Josie rested against the wall, she worked with Penelope on the side, showing her the right way to do things. The other dancers looked on at the two of them with jealousy, but one stiff glare from Josie made them stop right away. Josie held her water bottle against her heated skin, trying to cool herself down. She watched Penelope with awe; She was good at this, but Josie had expected nothing less. She knew her girlfriend pretty well; If Penelope Park was going to do anything, she wouldn't settle for anything less than excelling at it. Josie stretched out her sore muscles, sipping from the bottle. Of course, their first class would be on the same day they were training for their next big meet. If Josie's muscles weren't already aching, they sure were going to be now.

"Hey, baby.", Penelope greeted her, slightly out of breath but smiling. "Are you okay?" Josie nodded, handing the water bottle to Penelope so she could take a drink. "Everything's fine, Pen. I'm just still tired from practice." "I understand", Penelope sympathized, supporting Josie as she arose from the ground. The two of them exited the building, walking hand in hand to Penelope's car. "I think I need a shower", she admitted with a nervous laugh. God, Josie would kill for a shower right now, she thought to herself; Especially with Penelope in it. Penelope's gaze snapped to her, a look of amusement and shock on her face. Josie gasped in horror when she realized she had voiced her thoughts out loud. The annoying smirk that Josie's hated (but loved) returned to Penelope's face, making Josie turn a darker shade of crimson. "Well, that can be arranged, Jojo. All you had to do was ask." Josie tried to form a sentence, stuttering from embarrassment and Penelope's eagerness. Penelope stopped her with a hand on her shoulder to ground her. "Hey, I was just joking baby.", she told her, any amusement replaced with sincerity. "I want you to be comfortable with me- and ultimately yourself- before we even attempt anything like that." Josie sighed with relief, the tenseness in her shoulders dissolving. "No pressure, okay? I don't ever want you to feel like you have to do something you don't want to do." She kissed the back of her hand, rubbing her thumb over her skin. "You call the shots here, okay?" Josie nodded, once again surprised by the utter respect Penelope had for her. Penelope unlocked the car, reluctantly letting go of Josie's hand. "C'mon; Let's get back to my place and watch one of those dumb rom coms you adore."  
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After the girls showered quickly (separately, of course), they settled into Penelope's bed and turned on one of the many romantic comedies that Josie had saved on her TV. Josie had declined Penelope's offer to make dinner, and instead, they compromised on splitting a bowl of popcorn instead. Penelope watched Josie, who was curled up next to her and periodically taking a single piece of popcorn from the bowl. Something was…off about her girlfriend. For one, Josie looked tinier than just a few weeks ago. The shirt Josie usually stole from Penelope to sleep in was bigger on her than before, even though Penelope was a size smaller and quite shorter than Josie. Secondly, Penelope couldn't remember the last time she'd seen Josie eat, like, an actual meal. Of course, she wasn't with Josie constantly, but she was with her a fair amount of time. They spent lunch together, but they were normally in the library talking or studying. Whenever Josie came over at night, she always declined the food Penelope offered. Penelope had assumed that maybe she had eaten with her family or maybe even Hope earlier in the day, but she had been with Josie 90 percent of the day and the only thing she had seen Josie consume was water; And a lot of it.

Josie, sensing Penelope's eyes on her, turned to her girlfriend with an amused look. "What?", she asked through her giggling. Penelope just shook her head. "Nothing. You're just beautiful." Josie smiled, burying her face in the side of Penelope's neck. Penelope held her close, running her hand through Josie's hair. She decided not to bring up her fears with Josie. If Josie was having problems, she had to trust that Josie would come to her on her own. After all, she had promised not to be pushy with Josie, and prying was the same thing, wasn't it? She held a piece of popcorn and offered it to Josie, who took it from her without hesitation. Penelope sighed in relief. If Josie had a real problem, then she wouldn't have done that. No, she was worrying for nothing. Josie was happy, she was happy. Everything was okay. At least for now, everything was okay.

It seemed as if they had finally caught a break.


	25. Chapter 25: The FreeFall

Penelope pulled into the parking lot, slamming her door roughly and sprinting through the trauma bay to the ER. Her lungs burned from the effort, her body shaking from shock and adrenaline. She approached the nurse's station, struggling to speak while trying to catch her breath. "Hi, welcome to Mystic Falls general. Can I help you?", the nurse asked, her cheery smile annoying Penelope to no end. How could all these people smile while Penelope felt like her world was burning down? "Saltzman…Josette Saltzman. She should have admitted, like, twenty minutes ago." Her throat felt dry as she said her girlfriend's name and "admitted" in the same sentence. "She had a seizure." The nurse typed something into the computer, and Penelope tapped her foot anxiously as she waited. "I'm sorry, I don't see a Josette Saltzman in our system. Are you sure this is the right hospital?" "I'm sure", Penelope said through gritted teeth. Of course she was sure- she had watched in horror as they loaded Josie into the ambulance. She wasn't stupid. "Check again." "I'm sorry, but our system is very up to date. I don't believe your friend is here." Penelope slammed her hand against the counter. "No, don't give me that sympathetic bullshit!", she yelled, causing the nurse to jump back. "You don't understand. The girl I love is somewhere in this hospital and I need to see her. So I don't care what you have to do, or who you have to call, but Check. It. Again!" Penelope felt hands pulling her away from the desk, and the more she fought against them, the tighter they held onto her. "Let me go!", she yelled, but they ignored her. "Look at me. Penelope, hey, look at me", the voice said, and Penelope reluctantly obliged. When her vision focused, Elizabeth Saltzman herself was standing in front of her, her face splotchy with tears. "I know you're scared, Penelope. I am too, but you need to calm down, okay? You can't help Josie if they throw you out for assaulting the staff." Penelope closed her eyes, collapsing into the hard waiting room chair and putting her head in her hands. This was all her fault, she decided. If she had spoken up earlier, gotten Josie some help…she wouldn't be fighting for her life right now. There were so many signs, so many cries for help that had gone unnoticed. She had let Josie down.

They had failed her, and their mistakes might be fatal.  
__________________________________________________________________________  
Two weeks before  
__________________________________________________________________________  
Penelope had not realized until now how hard the Salvatore school trained before big meets. She was used to it, of course, but it didn't mean that it didn't exhaust her every time. The practice was scheduled for every day before and after school, so both Penelope and Josie had been very busy. She hadn't spent time alone with her girlfriend since the weekend, and probably wouldn't until their meet was done and over with. Penelope would have been fine with this. She understood that Josie was captain, and her every waking moment had been dedicated to helping her team succeed. She understood because she had had to do the same when she was still captain at Bellmont. She would understand, had she not been so worried about Josie's wellbeing. Josie looked drained, the dark circles around her eyes a stark contrast to how pale she had become. She had a dazed look on her face, almost as if her mind was no longer where her body was. She would stop for a moment, shake herself out of the trance, and then go back to coaching her girls. Well, not coaching. More like screaming at them. Penelope had never seen her so stressed out.

Hope swam up next to her, watching Josie with the same concern in her eyes. "I am sure fucking glad this is the last meet of the season. I think if she goes too much longer like this, she might collapse in on herself." "Is she always like this?" Hope shrugged. "Josie takes her job pretty seriously. She'll do anything to make sure we beat those bitches at Bellmont." She remembered who she was talking to and grimaced. "No offense." "None taken.", Penelope assured her, rolling her eyes. "They've been sending me letters saying that 'I should come back to the team or else'." Penelope dismissed the threat. "I know they won't do anything. They're all talk. They just know they can't win without me, and they're starting to panic." "Your ego astounds me, Penelope Park", Hope joked, causing Penelope to splash some water in her direction. Through their laughter, they noticed Josie glaring at them. The two girls stopped what they were doing and swam away, still giggling under their breath. "All's fair in love and war, I suppose", Hope commented, looking back at Josie out of the corner of her eye. "And it seems between you guys, there's both."  
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"I'm here", Hope said as she entered, pushing her hair behind her shoulders. She sat down next to Penelope, grabbing hold of her shaking hand. "How is she doing? Does anyone have news on her?" Penelope shook her head, gesturing to Lizzie and Alaric, who were talking together quietly. "Uh, she had a seizure", she says, her heart pounding fast against her chest. "They're running tests on her to see how bad it was." Hope leaned back, her hand covering her mouth nervously. "How did this happen?", she voiced out loud to nobody in particular. "I know she was working herself hard, but that's just Josie. She works hard. I just-how…?" Penelope leaned against Hope's shoulder, offering and receiving the comfort of human contact. She couldn't do much else to comfort Hope, or herself. She didn't have answers, no matter how badly she wanted them. She couldn't tell Hope that everything was going to be okay, because nothing felt okay at that point. They should be returning home from their meet right now, celebrating their victory. Instead, they were waiting for news- any news- that would tell them Josie would be alright.

Lizzie joined them a few minutes later, leaving her father to tell her mother the news. She sat on the other side of Hope, her arms wrapped around her stomach as if she was about to be sick. She didn't say a word, her gaze fixed on the crack in the linoleum in front of them. None of the girls said a word; They just sat there- Penelope's hand in Hope's, and Hope's hand in Lizzie's- watching the clock tick away the minutes. Almost an hour passed before the doors of the emergency room opened and a blonde woman strode in. She looked around, her eyes narrowing when she saw Josie's father. She walked up to him, anger written all over her face. "How could you let this happen?!", she yelled, throwing her bag on the nearby chair. "I leave her with you for a month, and you can't even take care of her properly?!" "This is my fault?", Alaric retorted, laughing at the implication. "If you hadn't have broken up this family, our daughter wouldn't have a reason to be stressed out!" The two went back and forth for a few minutes, and Lizzie tensed up even more at every foul thing they said. Finally, despite Hope's protest, she approached her parents, pushing between them to get their attention. "You both need to cut it out!", she yelled, causing her parents to pause their disagreement. "This isn't about you or your problems. This is about Josie- you know, your daughter?!" "Lizzie, this is between your mother and me." "I don't care, dad. You're not only making a scene, but you're acting like children! While Jo is in there fighting for her life! You both need to figure out your priorities, and you better make it fast. Because…we might not have much time left with her." Alaric and Caroline turned to each other, then their sullen daughter. They wordlessly pulled her into a hug, and Lizzie broke in her parents' arms. Alaric and Caroline knew their daughter was right. The fight that was brewing between them would have to wait. Right now, they had to worry about Josie and the fact that they might have to prepare for their family to become one person shorter.  
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Two minutes before  
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The meet was tense, as they always were. All the teams had competed, leaving just two competitors to go- Josie, and Kelsey. The Bellmont swimmer shot a mean look at the girl, but Josie was unfazed. Penelope squeezed her girlfriend's shoulder, smiling. "You got this, baby.", she encouraged her. "Show that bitch what you're made of." Josie nodded, getting up on the starting block and taking her position. She looked shaky on the block, but Penelope knew it was just nerves. She stood by the edge of the pool, waiting for the signal. 3…2…1…

The bell sounded, and the two swimmers pushed off into the water. They swam under the waves for as long as they could, eventually popping up just when they were neck and neck. They swam through, both sides cheering for their team's swimmer. Penelope, Hope, Lizzie, and the rest of the team stood by the edge, cheering and screaming as they watched Josie go. Josie reached the edge of the pool, tucking under the water and turning herself around. She pushed off from the edge just as Kelsey reached it. She was in the lead! Penelope screamed until her voice was sore, looking up at Josie's time. She was not only about to win their meet, but she was going to beat her time doing it. A few more minutes, and they'd be victorious. "Go, Josie! Go, go Josie!", their team chanted, urging their teammate on. Josie gripped the edge of the pool, but instead of turning around to swim back, she clung onto the edge with white knuckles. Penelope knelt, concerned by the horrified look on Josie's face. "Baby, what's wrong?", she asked, no longer concerned about winning. Josie was so pale, and she was breathing heavier than normal. "I…I", Josie stuttered, unable to finish the sentence. Penelope looked away for a second- one single second, and in that time Josie let go of the pool, sinking into the deep water. "Josie? Josie!", she screamed, catching her teammates' attention. They realized that they could no longer see Josie through the waves. "Oh my god", Andie exclaimed, stuck in place by her shock. "We need help over here!", someone else yelled. Their other teammates became frantic, not even noticing when Penelope dove into the pool. Penelope reached blindly into the deep blue water, chlorine stinging her eyes and her lungs begging for breath. She was feeling as if she'd pass out herself when she felt Josie's hand beside hers. She quickly wrapped her arms around Josie's torso, pulling her back up to the surface. She gasped for breath, and her teammates pulled Josie out of the water and laid her on the title beside the pool.

Josie was blue, lifeless. Her limbs were twitching, and she looked almost possessed. What scared them the most was that Josie was completely unconscious. Penelope ran over to her, dropping onto her knees and beginning chest compressions. She was suddenly very grateful that she had been a lifeguard two summers ago, and in turn, she knew how to do CPR. She continued frantically as her other teammates watched helplessly. "Breathe, Jojo.", she begged, continuing to try to return Josie's consciousness. "You can't die here, Josie. Not today. Breathe, please. I love you. Please, please, breathe goddammit!" Josie spasmed, coughing up water and gasping for air. Penelope stood back, and a swarm of adults engulfed her, including Josie's dad who had been watching from the stands. Penelope sat against the wall, feeling sick as they tried to help Josie. When the paramedics came in and loaded Josie onto a stretcher, she jumped up and followed them outside. As she was approaching the ambulance, one of the adults held her back. "Only immediate family can go in there, kid.", the gruff man told her. Penelope didn't fight; fighting would take away from the time she could be using to get to the hospital. She went to find Hope, who was trying to calm her teammates down and explain what was going on to them. When she saw Penelope, she was confused. "Why are you here, Pen? Go. Go make sure Josie is okay. I'll take care of things here." Penelope thanked her before rushing out of the building. She needed to get to Josie. She had to make sure Josie was okay.

Josie had to be okay.  
________________________________________________________________________  
Josie's hand twitched in Penelope's, startling her from her sleep. "Penny?", Josie said wearily, disoriented from being knocked out for so long. Penelope breathed a sigh of relief, thanking every deity she could think of silently. "Goddammit, Josette.", she muttered, crying in both relief and anger. "You scared the hell out of me. Please don't do that again. You can't ever do this again." Josie put her hand on Penelope's head, stroking her hair gently. "I'm okay, baby. I'm alright." Penelope shook her head at the lie. "No, Jojo. You're not alright. According to the doctor, you haven't been alright for a while." Josie stared back at her, realizing her secret had been exposed. Penelope took a deep breath, steadying herself. "That's okay, though. Because we're going to get you help, Jojo." She brushed the hair away from Josie's face. "You don't have to deal with this alone anymore. We got you, Josie. I've got you."

"I'll love you until you love yourself again."


	26. Chapter 26: The 12 Reasons Why

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie is pissed, dealing with the repercussions of her actions. Penelope comforts her from afar.

Six weeks, two days, and 7 hours. That's how long it had been since Josie had been admitted to this facility. That's how long it had been since Josie had seen her friends, her home, and Penelope. That's how long it had been since Josie could look in the mirror and see anything but a giant, formless blob. She hated it here. She hated the overly cheery doctors, and the twenty other patients, and the smell of food that permeated the whole ward. It seemed like there was food everywhere here, and Josie could do nothing to escape it. If she didn't eat, she didn't go home. And Josie wanted to go home. If she had to stay here any longer, she was likely to lose her damn mind. The only good part of her day was when she was able to call her family. Lizzie kept her up to date with school drama, gossip, and all the other things that she cared about and Josie didn't (she listened anyway because she missed hearing her sister's voice). Hope found new jokes to tell her every day, and it was the only thing that Josie smiled about these days. Her parents never called, visiting her every other Thursday and on the weekends. She enjoyed these visits, especially because she hadn't seen both her parents in the same vicinity in a long time. Penelope never called, and they wouldn't allow her to visit, but her parent's always brought her a letter during their visits, her name scrawled on it in Penelope's handwriting. After they'd leave she'd return to her room and rip it open, reading the letter in the dim hospital lighting.

Seeing Penelope's words was always comforting. She'd write about what was happening in Josie's favorite tv shows, and about the funny things that were happening in class and at practice. She would write updates about their friends, and remind her of how much they missed her. But, most importantly, she wrote about how much she missed Josie. She sent quotes that she found in books that reminded her of Josie, and she reminded her how beautiful she was. She told Josie all the things that she was looking forward to doing with her when Josie returned; And, at the end of each letter, she put one more reason that Josie should love herself. In the six weeks she had been here, she had twelve reasons that Penelope had given her:

"1.) You are the most intelligent person I've ever met. All of the knowledge you have about the world, and people, and literature- baby, I could listen to you talk all day.  
2.) You do everything with so much passion. You put 100 percent of yourself into every single thing you do, and you care about everyone around you so deeply. (Maybe it's time to put that energy into yourself, Jojo.)  
3.) You are so talented. Not just in swimming- which you already know you're great at- but in so many other things as well. You're a great listener, and you give the best hugs. You always have this way of knowing exactly what to say or do. You're gifted with intuition, Josie, but you really should tune in to your self first.  
4.) You are so loved, Josie. Me, your sister, your mom and dad, Hope, the team- there are so many people here to support you. We would do anything for you, Jojo- don't be afraid of asking for help when you need it. It doesn't make you weak, baby girl- it just gives you more strength than what is already inside you.  
5.) You deserve happiness, Josie. You deserve sunny skies, and positivity, and love in your life, of course, but most of all you deserve to be happy. Your smile is the most beautiful thing about you. You should wear it more often. Every day might not be the best, and I'm not going to pretend they will, but there is the best part of every day. But, even on your worst days, I will strive to make them a little better for you.  
6.) You are my sunshine, Josie. You are my best part of every day. There is no one else in this world that is like you. Just thinking of you now makes me happy. I've never felt anything like that before you. I never really had much of a family, but you showed me what that type of unconditional love feels like. You gave me purpose. And there is so much purpose to your life, too.  
7.) Everyone has bad days, Jojo; It's okay to not be okay. I know you feel like you have to be strong and put on this brave face for everyone, but it's okay to let yourself be vulnerable. No one will think less of you for it, especially not the people that genuinely care about you. Sometimes we have to fall to be able to get back up, Josie. Fall; We'll be there to help you back up.  
8.) Some people might have opinions on you because they do not know you well enough to understand your value. Don't listen to them. You are worth so much more than their empty words. In the end, no one's opinion of you matters except your own. I'm hoping these reasons will influence you to see yourself in a different light.  
9.) Nothing in this world is worth hurting yourself over, Josie. It kills me knowing that you felt so much pain that you began self-destructing. It pains me to know you had to go through that alone. Instead of destroying something, try creating instead. I know, I know- completely cliché. But it works. It doesn't have to be a masterpiece, but it will give you a way to express yourself healthily.  
10.) Your future is so bright, Josie. I know you have such big dreams, and I know you will reach every one of them. The biggest thing standing in your way is yourself. You can do anything that you want to, Jojo. And I'll support you every step of the way.  
11.) You're not a number, Josie. You’re not a statistic or a number on a scale. You're beautiful exactly as you are, inside and out. There's nothing you have to change for anyone; Even that little voice that keeps telling you that you do.  
12.) You belong here. You were put on the earth for a reason, even if you don't see it yet. If you weren't here, the world would be a different place. When I thought we lost you I couldn't imagine living without you. I don't want to live in a life that doesn't have you in it. You have a place here, always."

Josie read the reasons over and over, crumpling the letters after opening them so many times. She'd had a lot of people tell her bullshit over the last few weeks- they'd call her pretty, too skinny, a beautiful girl- but Penelope didn't see her for just her appearance. She saw all the things that Josie had hated about herself, and she had shown Josie that she loved them anyway. That she loved her, despite the problems that Josie had dragged her into. Hearing them from Penelope almost made Josie believe them. She wished she could just get better- for her family, for Penelope, for herself- but it was so hard. The "better" they said Josie had become, the more she hated herself. All of the hard work she had done was being erased before her very eyes. The definition on her stomach and her collarbones were fading, she felt uncomfortably full most of the time, and she knew she was gaining the weight back. It frustrated her, and she cried more nights than she didn't. She felt so alone, but with Penelope's words, the feeling was a little less intense. It reminded her of the days that Penelope had been just words on a page before Josie had begun to bond with the girl behind the neatly written sentences.

She carefully folded up the paper, tucking it back into her journal. So much was changing around Josie, and it terrified her. She still felt angry at herself. She still hated being in this hospital, forced to face her biggest fear- herself. And she still didn't believe Penelope's words or see what the girl saw in her. But, she hoped, maybe one day she would.


	27. Chapter 27: The Transition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josie adjusts to all the changes that are happening around her, and finds that the scariest of changes can also be the best ones, too.

Josie sat down on her bed, looking around the room. She hadn't stepped foot in her bedroom in two months, and it felt foreign to her. Even now, a week after she had been released from the hospital, the yellow walls, the pictures, the desk littered with books and neglected homework- it didn't feel like her anymore. This room was made for a version of herself that she didn't recognize, a person she was unsure existed. She felt like a stranger in her bedroom more than she already did at home. At least at her mom's apartment, she was able to have a clean slate. She had finished decorating it a few days ago, hanging curtains and placing fresh sheets on the bed. Her sister's side of the room, of course, had already been taken care of. Lizzie had been given weeks to adjust to being split between two houses; They hadn't even given Josie a warning. She had thought when she'd gotten home things would go back to normal, but instead, she had come back to what felt like another planet. Josie realized that her therapist was not kidding when she said that Josie had a hard time with change. With everything shifting around her, she felt lost in the midst of it. It felt that there was no place left in the world for her.

"Hey, Jojo.", Penelope said, holding the can of paint in her arms. Josie stood and took it from her, setting it on the ground by their feet. Then, she wrapped Penelope into the tightest hug she could muster. She hadn't seen Penelope in what felt like forever, and she couldn't stand another second without feeling the other girl in her arms. Penelope hugged her back, sighing into the warmth that Josie radiated. She had missed this- the closeness and peace that Josie brought her. When she hugged her, she could no longer feel Josie's ribs poke out of her skin. She was healthier, even if Josie didn't see herself as so. She knew that even though Josie had been well enough to be released from the hospital she could not expect everything to go back to the way it had been before. There was a long road of recovery ahead of Josie, and some of that she would have to let Josie face alone. Josie was facing her demons, and it wasn't going to be easy for either of them, but Penelope was nothing if she was not committed, and she had decided a long time ago that she was determined to stay as long as Josie would have her. She loved Josie, and she was determined to see the day that Josie loved herself, too.

The two of them talked for a while- Josie about her time inside the hospital and Penelope about the things she had missed. When Josie ran out of things to say, she listened to Penelope speak. She realized how much she had missed her girlfriend's voice. Her letters, as touching as they were, could not compare to hear Penelope speak, to see her and feel her hand in Josie's own. There was no other tangible feeling that Josie could equate to it, except that it was Josie's version of heaven. When they realized that more time had passed then they thought, they decided to set off on the task they had originally planned. Together, they moved Josie's furniture from against the walls, laying down the tarps that Josie had collected the day before. Josie cracked open the lid on the can of paint and Penelope handed her a brush. When they were fully prepared, they began the long, laborious task of painting Josie's walls.

When Josie had originally suggested this, she had expected her dad to say no. It had shocked her when he agreed, but she was happy that he had. Watching the cheery yellow color be replaced with the stark white paint was soothing. Josie was washing away the past and replacing it with a blank canvas, both figuratively had physically. With each coat of paint that they layered on the wall, Josie felt like she regained possession of the room a little bit more. They worked tirelessly throughout the day, and at the end of it, all traces of the old walls were gone. When the walls had dried, they hung Josie's pictures back on the wall. Then, they stepped back and admired their work. "There you go, Jojo.", Penelope stated, wiping the streak of paint away from her face. "It's perfect.", Josie admitted, smiling for the first time in months. Penelope called the people gathered downstairs to come and join them, and a few minutes later, Hope, Lizzie, and Alaric entered the room. They uttered hushed praise at the girl's work, and Josie felt a swell of pride at their approval. Penelope leaned down, picking up the permanent markers from where they lay on the floor. She handed one to each of the people in the room, and they all began writing on the wall.

When they were done, the wall was filled with what Josie could only describe as pure positivity. Her father had put some of his favorite quotes on the wall, each one a little more uplifting than the last. Lizzie had drawn rainbows and other doodles on one side, an array of color against the backdrop of white. Hope had written down her favorite knock-knock jokes (because that was just Hope for you), and Josie had written down the 12 reasons that Penelope had given her through her letters. Penelope had scrawled song lyrics from Josie's favorite songs in different colors. When they were done, her family and Hope left, leaving Penelope and Josie to gaze at the wall. "Is it how you imagined, Josie?", Penelope asked curiously, wrapping her arms around Josie's waist so she wouldn't fall from her place on Penelope's lap. "It's even better.", Josie exclaimed, resting her head on Penelope's shoulder. "Thank you so much for helping me with this." "Anything you need, Josie.", Penelope reminded her, tucking a piece of Josie's hair behind her ear. "I meant that, okay? If you want to let off some steam, or talk about your day, or paint your walls for seven hours straight, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." "Even though I scared you with everything that happened?" Penelope laced their fingers together, her eyes soft and sincere. "You scared me because I care about you, and I care about you because I love you. Nothing in this world could ever change that. I will love you until the end of time, Josette Parker Saltzman." Josie smiled, her eyes brimming with tears. "You're stuck with me, baby girl." Josie leaned up to kiss Penelope, attempting to convey the pure adoration and love she had in the gesture. She still didn't understand why, out of all of the girls on this planet, that Penelope Park had chosen her. She didn't know exactly how they had ended up here, together, and she didn't know where they were going next. If there was one thing Josie did know for sure, however, was that in a world that was ever-changing, one thing never would- she was completely and utterly in love with Penelope Park. Her choice to pick up that first letter was the best decision she ever made.

And even when it felt like there was no room for her in this world, she knew she would always have a place in Penelope's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, guys, this is the last true chapter of Mermaid. I'm so glad that many of you have enjoyed this journey just as I have. This story will always have a special place in my heart, but sadly all good things must come to an end. Next chapter will be an epilogue, following Posie 10 years into the future. 
> 
> I love you all <3 
> 
> P.S. Come follow me on Instagram at Posiesbtch. I'm working on another AU over there that I am very, truly proud of.


End file.
